Unconditional Love
by Vixen279
Summary: A week before her wedding to Dickie, Steph leaves town to think. Is this what her life has come to? While drowning her sorrows, she meets a very handsome man. This is a TART but no Babes are hurt. There will be Helen bashing.
1. Chapter 1

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for future scenes. Thanks for reading.**

 **His POV**

Ever since I was a kid, I wanted to be a soldier and after graduating high school early and taking accelerated college courses, I enlisted at 19. I am proud of my accomplishments so far in my life. I am an Army Ranger. I am one of the best. Most of my information is classified, but I will tell you my age is 25.

I am part of a crew that is shipping out in a week on a two year mission. There is a chance we won't make it back, but if we do, our contracts will be marked completed and we can decide to sign anew one. I trust these men with my life, or I would not have agreed to the two year field trip.

It just suddenly hit me that I might not come back, not in the 'I am afraid to die type of feeling', but in the 'who would really miss me type of feeling'. I think I want to get married. What a thought to have at this point, I know. I leave in a week.

I drink my cranberry juice and let my thoughts wander. I know I have a family, but we are only as close as we can be with my constant trips and missions. My friends are all coming with me. I want to fall in love. I can tell if a woman is right for me within five minutes of meeting her. Well, I can tell the wrong ones that quickly. I told the guys that I was going "trolling for some talent", but I was once again people watching.

I have noticed a pretty young woman who appears to be moping alone in the corner. She has apparently shot down every guy that has approached her. I go to the jukebox and play a few songs and walk over to see how she got rid of so many guys. I may need a new approach because being polite does not always work on some of the die-hard ladies.

When I am almost to her table, I notice she is chair dancing. That is adorable, because she does not seem aware that she is doing it. I catalogue her looks, wild curly brown hair, deep blue eyes, and very kissable lips. She just stares at me and I say the first thing that comes to my mind. She is going to throw her drink at me, I just know it.

 **Steph POV**

Ok, I ran away, but you don't understand. I don't love him, so how can they expect me to marry a man that calls himself Dickie and that already has male patterned baldness at the age of 26? Plus I caught him sharing more than his "legal briefs" with Joyce Barndhart! Ew. They don't know that I saw them in the backseat of his car. I just cannot do it. I begged Mary Lou to agree that we would have a 'Bachelorette Week' and go to Atlantic City. She went to AC alone all expenses paid two days ago.

I came here to Point Pleasant to think. I cannot marry Richard Orr. I know he is a lawyer, but so what? I want a career, too and I want to get my master's degree in Marketing, Business and Psychology. I also want to minor in childhood education. I have a dream. I want to open an after school center for elementary school kids and teach them life skills, languages and reading and math.

I also want to open a consulting business like to be an image consultant and that is where my college best friend, Lula comes in. She called me the other day and listened to my wedding plans and told me I did not have to marry that "Almost Bald White Dick" when I could actually pick anybody.

She said to be honest and maybe it could be a friendship and maybe more one day. I told her I would think about it. She told me to check myself before I wrecked myself. Lula sometimes used music to talk to me. She cracked me up.

My grandpa Harry had left me an inheritance of $5M in a trust fund if I got married by the time I was 22 to a trustworthy man that had to be Catholic and he had to be at least 25. My mother did not know the amount of the trust fund, but she knew the requirements. She had me on her version of the dating game and she and my older sister Valerie had chosen Richard Orr, attorney at law. He was from a good family and he was 26 years old.

My problem is that he was not trustworthy and I had proof. I took pictures. I would send them with a letter stating he could not fulfill the requirements. My Grandma Mazur had warned me that his Package was not up to par and that I should decline him, but I had not listened.

As we speak, there are hugely hideous Gone With the Wind dresses complete with hats and parasols. I am not joking. We live in Trenton, New Jersey and my mother chose a plantation themed wedding. Well, she can wear that cupcake looking monstrosity. I just don't know what I am going to do. My birthday is in three months exactly. Today was July 12th. I was going to be disowned, I just knew it. But right about now, I am wondering if that is such a bad thing. I sighed and drank my non-alcoholic iced tea.

This song was kind of cool. A throat was cleared and I looked up. Wow. He is very handsome. I waited, though because even a cute guy could be an idiot. A few of these morons had talked to my breasts and while I am glad they liked them, that was a no-no. I am wearing a green sundress that flairs and comes to my knees and shoes Lula made me buy that are surprisingly comfortable but are 6" heels! I love Lula, though because she said I had pimp juice. She is a hoot.

So I waited and I cannot believe he said, "Nobody puts Baby in the corner." I just looked at him and cracked up laughing. I loved Dirty Dancing! I did not realize I was sitting in a corner. He held out his hand and I got up and put my tiny purse around my shoulder diagonally and danced with him to "Yeah" By Usher. He had moves and I tried my best to follow all of them.

His smile was infectious and I giggled at him when he turned his back to me and grinded on me that way with his hands in the air. He was officially crazy. The next song was "Stand Up" by Ludacris. Lula taught me well. I gave my dance partner a look and he said, "You gotta love Ludacris." I just kept dancing. At least while I danced I could forget my problems for a little while.

I noticed when we moved that he was wearing a cross and dog tags and I reached out to touch them like the newsy person that I am. He caught my hand. "No one touches my tags but me except my wife or my medic." Wow.

"So, you are married?" He just laughs but it is not a happy laugh. He pulls me back to my table and holds out my chair.

"I will get us drinks and we can talk, Baby." I blushed. He came back with two bottles of cranberry juice and I smiled. He was not trying to get me drunk.

"So, tell me pretty girl, why are you here alone looking so contemplative?" I loved his use of vocabulary words. Stop it, Stephanie. This is not school. I took a deep breath and explained my problems. We had not exchanged names yet.

"So what is your name, Soldier Boy?" He smiled that wonderful smile at me.

"What do you want it to be?" He made me laugh again.

"I saw Pretty Woman too you know. I cannot believe you are flaunting your chick flick knowledge at me. Okay. I like Shakespeare, so I want your name to be from that." He leans in close to me.

"I am not letting you call me Romeo." Nope.

"No, I like Petrucchio. He was the male lead in 'the Taming of the Shrew'. I liked that he liked Katherina the way she was and realized he did not have to tame her to be happy and he liked her the way she was." He beams a smile at me.

"Fine, but shorten it, please." I smiled and he took my hand.

"So, tell me, Kio. Why are you here all alone? I have to tell you that you look hot, you can dance and you know movie quotes. A girl could do worse than to spend some time with you." He sighs this time.

"I leave in a week on a two year mission. I am an Army ranger and my crew has this assignment. We will have limited contact with anyone back home. They say there is a chance we won't come back, but I trust Ranger and the guys with my life. I am here thinking about what I will leave behind." Wait a minute.

"You are an Army ranger and you have a guy named Ranger in your crew?" He smiles and nods.

"Yup. He is the best. We all are, but he is just that bit better, so he got the title. Let's get out of here and go for a walk, Rina." I got up and followed him outside and we walked to the boardwalk.

"So, now I am the shrew?" He held my hand.

"Not to me, you aren't. I know you don't know me, but take my advice. Do not marry that guy. If he is already a cheater, he will not change. And another thing, those dresses sound disgusting. I dare you to find a man that will not appreciate a simple dress on his bride. It should be the woman, not the dress that he waits for at the altar." Wow. Just wow.

We hold hands and talk about our childhoods. I learned that he has lived in Georgia, Massachusetts, Louisiana, Hawaii, and Florida and that he always wanted to be in the army. He learns that I wanted to fly when I was six so I jumped off the roof of our garage and broke my arm. I told him I loved Wonder Woman and I hated playing with dolls when I was little. I also told him that Point Pleasant is my favorite place to visit because it reminds me of summers with my grandparents.

He said he liked music, movies and xbox. I said I loved movies, shoes, music and good food. I leaned into him and he wrapped his jacket around me. He was a gentleman. I noticed that he kept me away from the curbs and that he almost shielded me with his body at times.

I liked him, even if I do not know his name. He is tall, about 6'2" and I love his eyes. They are so expressive, it is like I can tell what he is thinking. I feel safe with him. I even think Lula would approve of him. Mary Lou would be scandalized. I love her, but the Burg got her. She is almost as Stepford as the rest of them. She speaks pot roast language. My stomach lets out a loud roar and he howls laughing.

 **His POV**

"Wow. I guess we should feed you before that thing attacks me." She shoves me. I like her. She is funny, smart and she has goals that do not include getting me naked. I am more than a handsome face.

We go to a diner to eat and she has pancakes and turkey sausage, while I have an egg white omelet with Spinach and cheese. I like how she almost attacks her food. She is not acting all dainty like girls do. That shit does not impress me. I watch her eat and she gives me attitude. She sneers at my food and calls me an amateur.

I smile at her and speak to her in a patronizing manner. "Listen, you are cute so I won't shoot you. Don't make fun of my food. I like different things and I had pancakes yesterday. Who knows when I will get to have an egg white omelet again, Rina? You are a heartless hussy and you are mean! I should quit you."

I finish eating while she processes my speech. Her expressions are adorable. She looks horrified, then offended, and then she cracks up and hits me again.

"And you are violent! That's it!" I stand up making scene. "We are through! Do not come begging me to take you back. I will not fall for the banana in the tailpipe again!" I pay the bill and leave a tip and walk out of the diner to wait for her.

She comes outside and glares at me and walks right by me. "You know it was funny, Rina. Those people gasped and everything. Come on!"

She protested a little, but I grabbed her hand and pulled her into a picture booth. We took pictures and made faces. In the last one, we just stared at each other. The sun was fully up in the sky when we made it to her hotel.

"It was great meeting you, Rina. Thank you for allowing me to have fun and to forget my problems." She smiles and she is deep in thought.

 **Steph POV**

"I had a good time, too. Are you really leaving for two years?" He nods.

"And you would not have contact, so if you got married, you would not feel neglected if your wife moved away to finish her degree for two years?" He smiled.

"This works better if you get down on one knee, Rina." I snorted.

"I am just floating out the idea, Kio. It could work, though. How old are you?" He smiled and took my hand again.

"I am 25 and you are 21. My birthday was April first. Do not laugh at me." I giggled anyway.

"You do fit the requirements. I will give you the rest of the day to make up your mind. If you want, we can sign a pre-nup. Plus if you marry me, you get to kiss me." He snorted and pulled me close to his body.

"First of all, I could kiss you right now if I wanted to. Second of all, you have some nerve proposing to me without a ring and while you are still wearing someone else's ring. You harlot!" He turns away from me, and then turns back.

"Lastly, proposing marriage is my job. Have dinner with me tonight. I will meet you here at 1700." He saw my expression and laughed.

"That means 5pm, Rina." I smiled and nodded. He kissed my hand and I gave him back his jacket. I raced back to my room to plan what I was wearing and to take a shower. I was also going to take a nap because I am tired.

Wow. I liked him. He is so dreamy. He did not kiss me! Maybe I should hock this ugly but expensive ring. Yes! I am keeping it. He cheated after all. I set my alarm. I have a new errand to run before my dinner date. This was going to be good.


	2. Chapter 2

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for future scenes.**

 **I get closer to the identity of our mystery man. Originally, I was keeping it a secret until much later, but it will come out in the next chapter. Thanks for reading.**

 **Steph POV**

I called Gram and explained to her that I needed her to make sure letters I am sending her get delivered. I already have most of my clothes and what I do not have with me, I will not miss. Gram agreed and I went to FedEx and dropped off letters with pictures included addressed to Dickie, Mary Lou, my mother and father, Gram, the priest at the church, Dickie's parents and my lawyer. It would go on file showing that Dickie no longer met the requirements.

I called the florist and donated the wedding flowers to the children's ward and any funeral that came up.

I called the caterer's and had them to coordinate with the local shelters for the food. I called and had the bakery send the cake to city hall's cafeteria with a note of thanks to the current administration.

My mother was on her own for the hall and the dresses.

The reason my grandfather even had that much money was that he hit the lotto right before he had a heart attack. He made Gram promise not to tell how much money he won. He set her up with a trust fund, too. That is why she will not live with my mother. She told Ma that she is older, not handicapped. Grandpa Harry put money into a trust for Val's kids that she can only use for their education until they get older.

My mother thinks I have what equates to a dowry and that Grandpa just wanted me married and settled instead of going away to college like I did. Please. I spent every summer with Gram and Grandpa Harry and he taught me things. He said a girl needed to be self-sufficient.

I can change a tire, do home repairs and I know about car engines. I was never afraid of getting dirty. Anyway, that is one task finished.

I headed to the jewelry store where I sold them my engagement ring and I put another ring on order. The man said it would be done in a day. Good. I went back to my room and changed into my royal blue V-necked sundress and matching sandals that were also 6" heels.

While I waited for it to be 5pm, I called Lula. She answered with 'How Many Licks' playing. She is so silly.

"What?" She must be busy.

"So, you were right and I am not marrying Dickie." She cackles laughing.

"Girl I was gonna come up there and kidnap your cracker ass in a couple of days. So, now what?"

I studied my reflection in the mirror. "Lu, I met someone and I like him. He is funny and he is a gentleman and he can dance." I smiled thinking about him.

"Girl, whatever. Are you coming down here or what?"

"Yes, I will be there in a week." She hums.

"Listen, I think we should not sell lingerie. We can still do the after school center thing, but we can be image consultants and just invest in a lingerie business. For us to be able to do what we want, we do not need to be tied down. Think about it and make sure your white ass shows up in a week, too. Be careful, girl." She is so nice.

"Ok, Lu. That sounds like a good plan. I will see you." I hang up and check the time. Oh no, I am almost ten minutes late. Those military types are probably sticklers for being prompt. I rush out of my room to meet him.

 **His POV**

It was harder to get away from the guys today. They all think I scored last night. I did, but not the way they are thinking. I met a sweet, funny, lively girl that is not afraid of me and that can understand where I am coming from. It was so easy to talk to her.

I leave in 6 days and I have already handled my paperwork and I have spoken to my priest. Some of the guys joked that we should get married. Ranger said that would not be fair to leave a spouse. He is so compartmentalized. He can turn off all emotion in an instant. That is what makes him the best.

I have never really had a relationship, but I want to try and court this girl. She seems special and the way she talked about her friends makes me sure that she is loyal. I am standing here with these variegated blue-green roses in the lobby of her hotel waiting for her. I bought two flowers to represent us. I check the time. Just like a woman to be late! I am not upset; it is another thing I can tease her about.

She gets the cutest little frown when I irk her. I watch the elevators for another ten minutes and suddenly one arrives and she almost runs out looking around. She spots me and I do not return her smile. She walks over to me and I just stand there.

"Hello." She looks up at me. Her dress is pretty and simple. I like it very much.

"Good evening, Miss. Can I help you?" She pouts and it is adorable.

"Stop messing with me, man. I was talking to my friend on the phone. I am sorry I am late." She gives me a slight glare.

I smile and hand her the flowers. "I forgive you. I thought about it and though I like our fake names, I want to let you call me by my middle name. Please call me Mateo." She smells the flowers.

"Thank you! These are beautiful. Okay, my middle name is Michelle." I take her hand and lead her out of the hotel.

"Have you been working out, Mitch? You seem to have lost weight." She giggles.

"Not today. I cancelled the wedding as much as I could and I sold the ring. Ha!" I am glad she cancelled that wedding. The pictures alone would have been awful.

We walk to an Italian restaurant and go inside. We are shown to a table near the window and I help her into her seat.

"So, Mateo, how are you feeling, today?" She keeps on smelling her flowers. I take her hand.

"I am feeling pretty good, Mitch. I am ready to take on my assignment. You look really pretty today. Will you marry me?" She chokes on her iced tea.

"What? You can't ask me! I was going to ask you!" She is so silly.

"Mitch, I told you it is my job. We can spend time together for the rest of this week and the day before I leave, we can get married by my priest. We can keep it quiet and I will sign a pre-nup if you want. I really like you and I know my feelings would only grow. What do you think?"

She wipes at her face. "I think we should get to know each other more. I don't want to get a divorce, Mateo." She has a point.

"So I will spend time with you every day, Mitch. I love looking at your smile, anyway. I will just have to keep asking." She blushes again.

We order and eat. She is so easy to talk to. I ask her to go to the movies with me because I don't want the date to end. There is a theater that shows old movies. Mitch agrees and we drop off her flowers at her hotel.

She sits next to me as we watch 'The Hangover' and laughs and giggles the whole time. I just watch her. When it is time to leave, I ask if she wants ice cream and she beams a smile at me. I have a weakness for cookies and cream ice cream. At her hotel later, I walk her to her door and she kisses me. When I pull away, she looks as dazed as I feel.

"I had a great time, Mateo. Thank you. What time are we going out tomorrow?" He just grins at me.

"Please be ready at 0900. We are spending the whole day together. If you are late again, I will leave you." She shoves me.

"I said I was sorry. I will be ready, I promise." I lean into her and kiss her this time. I get lost in her scent and her taste. She moans. I pulled away and tell her goodnight. I have to force myself to leave.

"Goodnight, Mitch." She smiles and I walk away.

 **Stephanie POV**

Oh, I really like this guy! He is so funny and not what I would expect of someone about to go on a potentially deadly mission. He seems to be so carefree. Maybe he is just taking joy at everything he will not see for two years.

He won't tell me where he is going , but the food thing is killing me. How could he not have good food where he is going? I shudder just thinking about it. And he proposed! He is so silly acting. I wonder what he will want to do tomorrow.

I wake up to the phone ringing. Who hates me?

"What?" I hear laughter.

"I warned you, Mitch. I am in the hotel lobby and I am leaving for my fun filled day without you because you are late. If you did not want to spend the day with me you should have said so. Maybe I can find another sweet, blue eyed girl to smile at me. Bye, Mitch." He hung up.

I jumped out of bed and ran to the shower. I dressed quickly in a red sundress that had white and silver flowers on it and red wedge heels that gave me a 5" boost. My bikini was underneath should we go to the beach. I was fixing my hair when I decided to check and see how late I really was and the clock read 7:45.

I want to smack him. I glared at my own reflection in the mirror as I fixed my ponytail. Why is he so early? Suddenly a thought struck me. Either he is just impatient to start the day, or he missed me. No, I will not swoon. He tricked me! He could have just asked me to come earlier. I grab a white wrap sweater to ward off a chill later and my bag and leave the room.

 **His POV**

She was going to hit me again, I just know it, but I could not resist. Also, I did not want the desk guy to listen to me tell her that I could not stop thinking about her smile all night. Ranger and the guys think I scored big time. They are right, but for the wrong reasons. Today should be fun. I will have to bribe her with food before she lets me off the hook.

The elevators ding and finally she steps out looking gorgeous. I prefer her hair loose, but with it pulled into a ponytail, I can really appreciate her beautiful face. She makes eye contact with me and smiles. Why isn't she pissed? My face must show my confusion, because she takes my hand and pulls me towards the door while talking.

"Honestly, Mateo, you could have just said you missed me. Where are we going?" It's like she can see right through me. I clear my throat and kiss her cheek.

"Mitch, after we eat, we are going to an arcade so I can beat you at skeeball, and then I thought we could have lunch and I will beat you at go karts. I will let you choose what we do after that, though I am amenable to a trip to the beach." She smiled at me.

"That sounds great. Tell me, do you cry when you lose or do you just throw a tantrum, Mateo?" I just smile and put my arm around her shoulder as we walk to the diner where we ate yesterday. We get some looks from the regulars, but we ignore them.

After we sit down, she asks me an important question. "So, where do your friends think you are?" My answer will piss her off.

"They think I scored yesterday and that I have gone back for more. Kind of storing up all the debauchery like a camel stores up water, you know?" She stares at me, and then she laughs.

"No, really." Oh man.

"No, I am telling you that is what they think, Mitch. My friends all think I am a ho. I just like people and I am easy to talk to. Women let me buy them a drink and they tell me their problems." She frowns.

"I never told any of them my problems until I met you, Mitch. Stop getting jealous. Anyway, the guys all think I must have slept with those women because they always smiled at me if our paths crossed again." She takes my hand in hers.

"That is a likely story, Mateo. Are you sure you are not covering up for some wild and raunchy adventures. You can tell me." She smiles sincerely at me.

"I am telling you the truth. It was easier to let my friends and the rest of our platoon at the time believe what they wanted. I got a reputation among the ladies and a good guy to talk to and among the guys as a ladies' man." I look up at her.

"I am not a virgin, but I am not some lothario. From spending time with so many women, I picked up a few things. You may have noticed my chic flick obsession?" She continued to hold my hand.

"I guess I should tell you why I believe you." We had finished eating, so we walked towards the arcade.

"My hometown is full of gossiping women with nothing better to do than talk about each other. When I was sixteen and working at the bakery, this guy came in at closing time. He was out of highschool. Anyway, he tried to seduce me right there on the floor behind the éclair case. I refused and I showed him what I thought of his offer violently." I want to go and show that guy a thing or two. What a creep.

"The next day, I found out that he left for the navy, but before he did, he wrote about having had sex with me and how I have a sweet, creamy center that is good to eat. As if! He wrote it on the bathroom walls at the pizza shop and the stadium." She sighs.

"Everyone to this day believes I willingly had sex with that guy. My own parents included. When he came back to town two years later and I saw him on the street, I ran his ass over and broke his leg in two places. No charges were pressed. Of course the town harpies think it was a lover's spat." She sighed. I hugged her.

"I believe you, Mitch." She looked up at me and smiled, then she mumbled something.

"Nope, I do not speak mumble. What did you say?" She takes a deep breath.

"I am still a virgin." I stopped walking. We were standing on the boardwalk with people milling around and to me they have all disappeared. Whoa. I pull her the side of the walkway and sit us on a bench.

"Thank you for trusting me with that information. You really dodged a bullet with that Dickie guy, huh?" She laughs and the tension is gone.

"Are you trying to seduce me or to distract me from beating you at skeeball, Mitch?" She hugs me.

"Thanks for not being all weirded out, Mateo. I never told Dickie about that and my friend Lula thinks I am crazy. She said one day bats will fly out of my vajayjay and I need to let someone dust it off or break the seal. She changes it around, but that is her gist." I laugh. Vajayjay indeed.

"No one in my hometown would believe that I waited. School was more important and I did not want to have sex with some guy who thought I was easy just because supposedly Morelli had conquered me." I hug her back.

"Do you feel better now that you got that off your chest, Mitch?" She kissed me gently and I loved it.

"Yup. Prepare to lose, homie." She races into the arcade and I just chuckle and follow her. I would miss her when I left, but I was here now.


	3. Chapter 3

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for future scenes.**

 **I get closer to the identity of our mystery man. Originally, I was keeping it a secret until much later, but it will come out in this chapter. Thanks for reading.**

 **Stephanie POV**

I am not crazy. Today is the 17th and Mateo leaves on the 19th. I am rushing around my room getting ready for my wedding. I am really going through with it. Because of his military status, he was given special dispensation. I will keep my name, but add his. I really fell in love with Mateo.

He proposed to me five times, but he had the ring the last time, so I knew he was completely serious. We were on the beach at just past sunset and we were arguing over who could dance better and we were doing different moves. He went to his knees and took my hands and asked me to please be his wife. I said yes on the condition that he came home to me. He stood up and told me I have a deal and kissed me.

When we broke apart, I was wearing a green diamond solitaire set into a titanium band. Great minds think alike. I jumped into his arms and we kissed and made promises to each other until it was late. He of course walked me to my room and said he would meet me in the lobby at 0900. He said the same thing every day and each time he showed up before 8am. I am glad I picked up his ring yesterday when I told him I wanted to shop for an hour.

I am wearing a simple white dress with a dark green sash tied into a loose knot and the ends hung down. The dress is a modest v neck sleeveless design that has a tight bodice and that comes to just past my knees and green sparkly 6" heels.

I also have on sheer white thigh high stockings with green garters. Heh heh. I pulled my hair back with a green sparkly headband and I have my purse. It is 7:30 and he has not called my room yet. He is late. I know he will come before 8am, so I just sit there and wait. Sure enough, at 7:45, he calls.

"Hello?" He sighs.

"Bad news, Mitch. I am going to be late today. I will be there at 1100. See you then." He hung up. I really want to smack him this time. I go to the door to answer the knocking and it is him smiling at me. I shove him hard, and then I kiss him hello.

 **His POV**

She looked beautiful and I cannot believe she finally said yes. I tried to be nonchalant, funny, sarcastic, and romantic, but she said yes when I was serious. Go figure. After she kissed me, I took her hand.

I was wearing a dark tan linen suit because she said black was a scary color and she did not want to marry a scary guy. My hair looked carelessly tousled. I had on my Raybans and I looked hot.

"You look amazing, Mitch. Are you ready for this? If you want, when I come back, we can have a big reception." She scoffs.

"Stop trying to chicken out, Mateo. We are doing this. You look sexy. You can have an 'I am not a bachelor party' when you get back if you want. I am fine." I adore her.

"Okay, I am parked right out front." I lead her to my new BMW, well her new BMW.

"Nice car." It was cobalt blue like her eyes.

"I am glad you like it, Mitch. It is my wedding gift to you." She blinks at me, and then she squeals. I am glad we are inside the car.

"Are you serious?" She is bouncing in the seat.

"Yes, Mitch. I know you plan to meet your friend and I figured you can take a road trip down there to Georgia after I leave. I just want you to be careful and carry the gun I gave you. You are a good shot. You and Lula should get certified and get your licenses." She smiled and took my hand again.

"Thank you for thinking of me. Here." She hands me a titanium chain.

"It is a better chain for your tags." I park at the church and switch my tags to my new chain. It is more durable. I like it. I kiss her gently.

"Thank you, Mitch." We enter the church through the back near the rectory and meet with Father Perez.

"Good morning, my son. You are early, but I figured you may arrive before the appointed time. This must be your bride. Come and let us complete the paperwork first." I like him. He is teasing me a little bit.

Mitch is quiet through the forms and paperwork, but she signs where she is supposed to adding my last name to hers. She said she will keep it quiet until I get back. When it was time to say our vows, we used the traditional vows, but I added something.

"Stephanie, we have had a quick courtship, but that does not mean my feelings for you are not real. Like this Claddagh ring, I am your friend as you are mine, we will remain loyal to each other, and you hold my heart in your hands."

She wipes a tear from my face and I wipe hers. I got this ring made to match her engagement band. It is also titanium and it is a band with the etchings and engravings of the hands holding a heart with a crown on top.

"Thank you. I fell in love with you and at the same time I gained a very good friend. You will face challenges and maybe hardships, but I want you to remember that I am here waiting for you. Take care of my heart, Lester and come back to me." She slides an almost identical wedding band onto my finger. Now I know why that jeweler was winking at me.

We finish our vows and kiss after we receive the blessing. We leave after hugging Father Perez and Steph takes her papers and I take mine. I would file them with the military so she would get my benefits should the worst happen. I drove us to the Windsor hotel to have brunch. Steph was excited and she kept kissing me.

 **Stephanie POV**

I am married! He is so special and I know we were both looking at this as a way to solve our problems, but I really fell for him. He likes hugs and he actually listens when I talk. He is not all stuffy and trying to impress someone, but I know he does impress them anyway. He is chivalrous and sweet and funny.

I have only seen snatches of his army ranger persona and that was when guys looked at me too long. His gaze turned deadly and they quickly became interested in someone else. We sat and ate and held hands as much as possible.

I hope he does not think I am nervous about sex, because I am not. I am not a prude; I was just not going to treat sex like a bodily function. To me it matters who I sleep with and now that means it is my husband, Lester Santos. I cannot wait to take a copy of this paperwork to my lawyer, Mr. Grisham. Ha! I know. I picked him because of his name.

"What are you thinking about, Mitch?" He smiles at me.

"I was thinking that my lawyer is named Grisham." He laughed a little.

"Are you ready to leave here, love?" He was so patient with me. He only rushed me when it was to spend more time together, and we had fun. I have pictures of him sulking at go karts because I won. He looks adorable.

"Yes, Mateo. Let's go." We leave and he lets me drive. We park and he takes a bag out of the cargo hold area. We hold hands and at my door, he drops his bag and picks me up, making me scream a little. Oh, he is carrying me over the threshold. I love this man.

Inside the room, he sets me on my feet. "Hello, wife." His voice sounds so husky. He shuts the door and I put all of my bags and papers on the sofa.

"Come here, Stephanie." I walk over to him and he pulls me close and kisses me deeply. I melt into his arms and he picks me up again and sets me onto the bed and follows me down so he is laying on top of me.

"We can take this slowly, baby. I will make it good for you." I sigh and kiss him.

"Do you want me, Les?" He stands up and walks us to the mirror and stands behind me.

"Look at that beautiful woman." He holds me close to his body and kisses my forehead.

He whispers in my ear. "Can you tell I want you, Mitch?" He grinds his dick on my ass.

"Almost," I whisper. He grabs my hips and grinds harder. He rubs my arms gently.

"Tell me you want me."

"Ohhh." He is so sexy.

"Do you want me, Stephanie?" I nod and watch him touch me in the mirror.

"Say you want my dick, Baby."

"Ahhh." He licks my ear.

"What's my name?" He pinches my nipples.

"Lester!" His eyes look so dark as he stares at mine in the mirror. He raises up my dress and takes it off me.

"Is your pussy wet for me, Baby?" Yes, sir.

"Yes!" He continues to grind against me.

"You want this big dick bad don't you?" Whew, I think I love dirty talk.

"Yes!" He grazes my stomach.

"You want it filling you up and going deep in that pussy?" Is it possible to have an orgasm without him even touching me there?

"Ohhhh." I lean back into his body. He took off his clothes and left on his green silk boxers.

"You love me don't you, Mitch?"

"Yes!" I really do.

"You like my touch don't you, pretty girl?" His hands get closer to the promised land.

"Yes!"

"You got me so fucking hard, Baby. It won't take me long to cum at all." His hand is now inside my panties and wow does that feel good.

"Now, come on Baby. Cum for me girl. Cum, because you want me so fucking bad."

"Les! I almost collapse but he caught me." Wow, what an orgasm.

"Mmmmmm. Okay." I pant.

"I believe you." He kisses me.

"You want me to stop?" He nuzzles my neck.

I kiss him without holding back. "Nope. Make love to me, Les, and then I want you to fuck me."

"As you wish, Stephanie." After that, things were a blur of sounds and smells and laughter and screams. When I finally went to sleep, I was already feeling overexerted. My husband is kind of a machine ladies and gentlemen.

He shakes me awake. I do not open my eyes.

"What time is it, Les?" He kisses my cheek and runs his hand over my body.

"It is 0430, Steph." I shove his hand away.

"I want a divorce. You just let me go to sleep two hours ago. The sun is not even up yet, man!" I roll away.

"Come on, Steph. Let me make love to you before I leave. Wake up and play with me!" He whines and it is so cute, I tickle him. I found out he was ticklish in the shower and he laughs and tickles me back.

"Look, Les. My vajayjay is on strike right now. Apparently there was some drilling or something and there may be permanent damage. Go back to sleep or do it yourself." I say this, but I straddle him and kiss his neck.

Les sighs. "It starts. I have heard of this. Once you are married, the sex stops. Why did I marry such a frigid bitch?" He finishes his sentence on a moan because I have handled the condom and then impaled myself on his rigid length.

Lula was right, sex is so fucking good! I try to tighten my muscles on him and he grabs my hips.

"Yes, baby, give it to me. Oh, Steph, I love you." I watched his face. He looks absolutely gorgeous! I bend over and kiss him and he flips us so he is on top.

We continue to kiss and he just feels so good. "Oh, Lester, yes!" We lay there with our legs tangled together.

"Mitch, baby, I have to go. Let's get a shower and we can check you out of this hotel." I bite my lip and nod.

"Hey, no tears. I will come back to you. I love you and you know it." I smile at him and touch the tags he gave me to wear. It was his extra set.

"Baby, will you hold onto my wedding ring? Where I am going, I cannot take it." I nod and add his ring to the chain holding the dog tags. We shower and I dress in a denim skirt and a white peasant top and my green wedges.

Les takes my hand and he carries my bags. I check out and we load the car.

"So, you will go to your lawyer's and then you are meeting your granny at the casino, and then you are on your way to Georgia to stay with your friend, right?" I nod and hold onto him.

"Don't forget, Mitch. I will email you and you can write back. I don't know how often I will be able to write. I have memorized Lula's address, Mitch. Let me know if you guys move. I love you, girl. Kiss me again."

I throw my arms around him and we kiss like the end of the movie. My hands are in his hair and his arms are on my back and holding my head. We pull back and I touch his tags and kiss his chest.

"Please be careful, Les. Follow orders and all of that." He plays with my hair. I am glad Father Perez took pictures yesterday with my disposable camera. I have four of them full of pictures of Les being silly or sweet. I inhale his scent. I am going to miss him so much.

"I promise, Mitch. I will be back. Take care of my wife." He got a cab and kissed me one more time, and I watched him ride away.

In order to stave off tears, I called Lula. She answered on the second ring.

"What, White Girl? Are you cancelling on me? I will whoop your ass!" I giggle.

"I's married now!" She goes quiet. It is a quote from the Color Purple, but I know she gets that I am serious."

"What?" She screeches.

"I said I's married now!" She screams and I laugh.

"Oh hell yes. You married your Soldier boy, huh?" She does not wait for me to respond, she just barrels on.

"Did you do it, yet? Was it good? Does he have a big one? Who am I asking? You have only seen like two. Did he make you sing the Hallelujah Chorus? Girl, give me the scoop!"

I laughed and sat in my new car talking to Lula about Les. I needed to talk to her. I knew she would be happy for me just like I know that today and tomorrow my mother's dream wedding was NOT taking place. Oh well, that is her problem. Like Lula says it is time for me to do me. I think that means I should make my own decisions. She is a great friend and she will be with me for this wild ride. I put the car in gear and switched the call to speakerphone. It was time to get moving.


	4. Chapter 4

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for future scenes.**

 **Lester POV**

Leaving Mitch was so fucking hard. She was so beautiful and brave. I rub my finger where my ring had sat and sighed. It would be a long mission, but it was a worthwhile mission so I was all in. The taxi dropped me off at the gate to Ric's house in Deal. It was a half hour long ride, but it was worth it.

I paid the taxi and went into the house and dropped my bag in the guest room I was using. I knew the guys would be in our version of a war room. We had protocols we followed and we were leaving tomorrow, so today we packed.

Ranger looks up when I come into the room. "He returns. Did you say goodbye?" I smile at him.

"No, I said I will see you later." Bobby and Tank laugh. Robert Brown was our medic and my partner and Pierre Thibodaux, or Tank was Ranger's partner.

"Did she believe you?" This was from Antonio Chavez, or Axe. He was to partner with Michael Ramsey who we called Ram.

"Of course she believed me. I was telling her the truth. Just drop it, Axe." I gave him a glare. Ranger cleared his throat.

"Focus gentlemen. We go in for our last orders at 0500. If you have any changes to make to your paperwork at that time, do so. Here are the checklists for packing. Make sure you have all the necessary supplies. We will lay down our cover in the first few months, and after our first check in, we will get any revisions to our orders." We all nod at him and get to work.

Hours later, I log onto my secure email and send a note to Mitch. I tell her that I miss her already and that I am proud of her for going after her dream. I remind her that she can send any emails she wanted, but that I may be slow to respond. I told her that I loved her and asked that she take care of my wife for me.

I closed the program and unpacked my bag. Inside was the sash from her wedding dress. I smelled it and rubbed it between my fingers. I immediately had a flashback of undressing Mitch and of our activities after that. She promised that the next time we made love; we would not need condoms because she would use the birth control shots.

Damn I love her. I do not need pictures of her to remember what she had looked like in her bikini and dancing with me on the beach. I had to shake these thoughts and get into the right mindset, but I said a prayer anyway. I prayed for her safety and that I would come home to her.

It was time for our ritual of getting just a little drunk and playing I never. We sat in the lounge and had shots of tequila lined up. Tank started it with, "I never got arrested." We all laughed and drank a shot and poured another.

Lester was next with, "I never got shot." We repeated the gesture.

"I never fell in love." I drank and so did Bobby. The guys just stare at me.

"What?' Ranger decides to take the question.

"Who did you fall in love with?" I smile and shake my head.

"I would rather not say, man." He was not letting me go though.

"Tell us about her, Lester." I sigh.

"She is smart, funny and beautiful. She has attitude and she does not take shit from anyone and she is good at revenge." I laughed remembering her running over that guy.

"So you think she will wait for you, man?" I smiled a huge smile.

"Yes, Tank. I really do. Ok, who is next?" Axe went next.

"I never slept with a married woman." Heh heh. I drank my shot along with Ram.

I went next. "I never got beat by a girl." I drank along with Bobby.

He said, "Pool, what about you?" I fist bumped him.

"Go karts, man. She is a demon." Ranger went next.

"I never had a threesome." He drank and so did Ram, Tank and Bobby. They stared at me again.

"Santos, we saw you leave the bar that time with two women and the next day they were hugging you and telling you to call them. Take your drink, man." I stared at them.

"I did not sleep with them. They had boyfriend troubles and they wanted to talk. Nothing happened. I am not lying and that is enough drinking gentlemen. Take your vitamins and drink your water." They grumble and we eat stew that Carlos made. He is a good cook.

We went to bed and we were up at 0400 running five miles and then we dressed and loaded the cars and headed to the base. I stopped and turned in my paperwork. I gave them the address of Mitch's lawyer to use as a contact. I signed some more forms and met up with the guys in the conference room.

By noon, we were ready for our flight. I sent one more email telling Mitch that I love her and that I will think of her and we were airborne. I made it through one day so far. I just have 720 more to go.

 **Stephanie POV**

"Mr. Grisham, here are copies of my marriage license and name change documents. Please file them, but quietly." He smiles at me.

"Congratulations, Stephanie." I nod and continue with my list.

"I am moving to Georgia for a couple of years and I would appreciate it if we could just communicate via fedex or emails. Also, I want an account to use with just the interest from the investments. Can you do that?" He nods.

"Yes, of course. Anything else?" I take a deep breath.

"I need you to keep my husband's name confidential. He may correspond with you or you will be notified if there is an emergency with him. I will give you this phone that has the number to another burner phone. You can put it in my file and call me if you need me, Mr. Grisham."

"Okay. Your grandmother knows you better than everyone else and she had me create a black amex for you that is tied to her account just in case. Here you are." I take the card and wipe away tears. Gram wanted me to escape whether I got married or not.

'Thank you, Mr. Grisham." I take the card and put it into my bag. I stand up and put my papers away.

"Have a good day, Stephanie and I will file the papers for you."

I drive to the Golden Nugget and get some food at the buffet and sit in Gram's favorite booth. Eventually she will come on by. I eat seafood and I get an alert on my email, so I open it and read Les' message. I will miss him, too.

"Hey Baby Granddaughter! Don't you look all aglow this fine afternoon!" I knew she would notice.

She sits down with her plate and kisses my cheek.

"Girly, I delivered those notes like you asked and it was like a shit storm hit town. The wedding is supposed to be tomorrow and the scandal is huge!" She drinks some of her lemonade and grins at me.

"Somehow the pictures got sent to the newspapers and now Dickie Orr will not be running for district attorney like he planned. People are saying you left him because of the cheating and your mother is drunk out of her mind. She has a living room full of wedding favors and she has that fugly wedding dress there, too." She eats a biscuit.

"Your father is very blasé about the whole thing. It is like nothing gets through to him. Your friend Mary Lou came back and told everybody that you guys split up and that she does not know where you went. She said you wanted to take some time to think. That plus the letters and everyone knows the wedding is called off. Good job. Now tell me all about who you married. Nice rings."

I blush and tell Gram all about Lester. She asks about his size and I refuse to tell her. "Look, Stephie, I am glad you got away from all of that madness. You don't have to make the same choices as your mother. She likes all of that recipe nonsense. I enjoy cooking, but it is not my life. Now, where are you going?"

"Gram, I am going to Georgia to get my masters' degrees with my friend Lula. I will keep in touch with you, but I will probably be gone for two years. Maybe you can come and visit us sometimes." She hugs me.

"Live your life. I want you to follow your dreams. I love you, Stephie. I never did agree with the way your mother raised you girls. Your sister became her clone and she only treated you decent when you played house or something like that. You deserve better. Now give me another hug and get going. I want lots of postcards. Have fun, Stephie!"

I hugged Gram and left feeling great. I knew she would be happy for me. I drove to Walmart and bought a cooler and some supplies. It was road trip time. Next stop, the ATL!


	5. Chapter 5

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for future scenes.**

 **Month 1**

From: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

To: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

Mitch-Love we have arrived and it starts. I dream of your beautiful smile every night and I hope you are safe. Though I will not be able to respond to all of your messages, please keep me updated. The guys think I gave you a line or that you will not wait for me. They are in for a shock. I have to go, but take care of my wife—she is my world.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-I have arrived and Lu has a whole boot camp planned for us. She said we can be smart, beautiful and badass. Actually she said we can be the bomb diggety snip snap sack, but we had just watched Half Baked. I caught her drift from the list of classes and training she wants us to take.

She said we need to stay busy and resist temptation because the last guy she dated made her want to call Tyrone. That means he treated her like an ATM and she was not having it. Pray for me, love. Lu is a demanding taskmaster and she is brilliant at time management. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-Okay, we are doing judo classes and krav maga. Lu said we have to use what we got to get what we want. She kills me. We are also taking cooking classes and we do Zumba. Lu has our schedule packed. She said I won't have time to miss you, but she does not realize is that I miss you every minute. I keep waiting for you to call me and nag me. Our classes start next month and we are also doing courses online. It will be tough but worth it. By the way, Lu's house is beautiful. She said we should build homes in NJ since we will go back there. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-Lu wants me to ask you if you can hook a sista up? She looks at your pictures and tells me that I hit the man jackpot and it was not because of your looks but because of the expressions on your face because she said you were looking at me with nothing but love. Wow. I have been getting used to our self-imposed boot camp and I talked to Gram.

She said there is still a scandal over the cancelled nuptials. Oh well, I do not miss that drama. Did you know that Lu can do the splits? Me either. I lost that bet and now I have to take gymnastics classes from some ex cheerleaders that I know are mean girls. They wear pink. That is the torture I have to endure next month. I will do better research in the future. On the plus side, Lu says we can have a shopping spree at the end of a year. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

 **Month 2**

From: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

To: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

Mitch-I am glad you have such a good friend. She will keep you out of trouble. Things are going as well as can be expected here. You know I cannot tell you much. We are all fine, though. I think of you often. Building your own home sounds like a good long-term project. I want a mancave, lots of land, a pool, a sauna, a media room and balconies. I want large closets and a king size bed. I want my wife. Take care of her for me, please. She is my world.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-It is not being paranoid if they are really out to get you. I found out from my lawyer that my mother tried to have the costs of the aborted wedding taken out of my "trust fund". He stonewalled her, but reported it to me. I had already paid for the flowers and the food when I donated them. All she has to pay for are those hideous dresses that I did not want anyway. Oh well. She needs to learn her lesson.

Gram says my sister is pregnant again. What is her rush? Her baby is only ten months old. Sheesh, is she crazy? I am not against having children, especially if they have your green eyes, but she will have two kids in diapers at the same time. Gram said she is hoping for a boy this time. I pity the poor child if it is a girl. Lu still wants you to hook her up and she is still as bossy as ever. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-Lu and I discussed the particulars of the homes we wanted and I told her your wish list and she said she really likes you. We added a gym and we each want five bedrooms. Once we were finished, we sent the sketches to Mr. Grisham. He will interview architects for us and he found us some land! We both will have 2 acres besides the homes and garages and pool areas!

There is a small creek that spans both properties so we will share. Lu says we should share the pool, too, but I am going to wait on the sketches. Meanwhile, she invested money for me and Mr. Grisham wants to hire her. We are still doing classes every day. I miss your nagging. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-I told Lu that we should keep a journal of our activities and she agreed. We have been thinking of names for our consulting business. I do have fun with her. Our cooking classes are going better than the aborted classes I took growing up. I was in shock that we are not supposed to put gravy on everything. I am not kidding. I do not remember a meal where there was not gravy except when we had lasagna. Am I rambling? It may be because I did not hear from you, yet, but I will keep the faith. No news is good news and all of that. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

 **Month 3**

From: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

To: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

Mitch-I miss you girl in so many ways. I miss the expressions on your face. You really are in good hands and it is a good thing that you are out of town. Your mother has some nerve. I hope you know that I can cook, too. Most of us can cook, especially Ranger. I can tell you that he learned from his abuela.

I know I may sound demanding with this next request, love but please do not cut your hair any shorter than it was when I last saw it. I dream about your hair, all wild and curly and blowing in the wind or spread out on the pillow. I watched you sleep for those two hours before I just had to touch you.

Your sister sounds like she has a different set of goals than you do. To each his own, love. I just hope she has the support she needs. Our children will be beautiful if they look like you. When we are ready, we will decide that together. The guys are being a little standoffish to me lately and I am not sure what that is about. I will keep you posted as much as I can. Take care of my wife—you know she is my world.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-Gram told me it's a girl. My sister found out and told my mother and she told my father who had no reaction at all. What is his deal? He acts like a zombie. Is that what happens to a middle aged married man? If so, I feel sorry for you. I am sorry your friends are not being nice to you right now. I would beat them up for you if they were not all made of muscles like you. Man, I miss you.

We are getting better at our classes and now our schedules really are packed. I won't cut my hair any shorter. I love your hair, with its blonde highlights. When you smile, you look totally harmless. Your frowny face is way scary though. In other news, Lu met someone but disqualified him because she said he wanted to sop her up like a biscuit before she put it on the menu. Some guys are really after one thing. I think I got the best one. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-You sweet wonderful man! You memorized Lula's address so you could have a present sent to me for my birthday! Now I have an ankle bracelet with the same engravings as my ring. Thank you for my birthday card. Lu says you are irreplaceable and I better not ever let you go. I told her I was yours forever and she said I am whipped. I just smiled and told her that maybe you would find her a nice guy. She said she does not want a nice guy.

She wants someone hardcore that will recognize that she is a ride or die chick. We have to do a project and complete a business model. We are using our idea for the class. Gram is coming to visit next month! I am so excited for her to meet Lu. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

 **Month 4**

From: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

To: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

Mitch-I am glad you got your gift, love. I miss your pretty smile. We are well into our roles here and I found out why the guys are being weird. Tank was the first one to say that he had no problem with homosexuality. I just nodded at him and said me either. Each of them made similar comments to me and then Ranger said when we got back home; he wanted to make sure that Mitch was a good enough guy for me. I had to leave the room, love.

Why do they think you are a guy? So, I told them that I had not been sleeping with all of those women they saw me with, and then my partner told them that I say your name in my sleep. I am not even going to correct them. It will give me something to laugh about when they meet you. At least this way, they will stop asking about my conquests. Take care of my wife—she is my world.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-I told Lu about your email and we both howled laughing. That is crazy! Well, at least you have something else to smile about. Gram and Lu hit it off just fine. Well, a little too well. Lu gave Gram a makeover and she likes halter shirts a lot now. Lord help me.

They went to a strip club and made me go as well. You can calm down. We went to the female strip club. They decided that we should learn to pole dance. Would you think less of me if you knew that Gram is better at it than I am? Lu said that Gram is her idol. So, I will keep taking pole dance lessons. The weather down here went from mild to brisk and Lu says the next phase is cold as shit, so we shopped for warmer clothes. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-I miss you and I think about you all of the time. Not knowing where you are makes it hard for me to settle down sometimes. Lu won't let me watch world news. She is so funny and cute being overprotective. She keeps me busy with these classes and with Gram here for another week, they are a challenge.

Gram insisted on doing speed dating one night last week and I went because I knew she would cause a ruckus. I was right. We were asked not to return to that place because we were not allowed to feel the men as part of the three minute date. I will give you one guess who fondled those men.

That woman is a menace. She told me she is old, not dead and that she still had needs. I begged her not to describe those needs to me, so she told Lula instead. And you think you have a lot to deal with? I love you. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

 **Month 5**

From: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

To: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

Mitch-You always make me smile. Listen love, things here are getting more serious and I will not have access at all for a couple of months, maybe more. You should keep writing, though, because when I do get to write again, I will want an update on my wife. I love you. Now smile. The guys still think I am gay. Best joke ever and they are doing it to themselves. Sorry this message is so short, but we are leaving. Take care of my wife—she is my whole world.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-Of course I will continue to do updates. Lu was right and it is cold as hell! She still makes me run. She said do I think a creep would only chase me when it was nice outside. She is so smart and motivated. I am glad I met her.

She was in a spandex phase when we met and I told her that unless she was actually for sale, she should present herself differently. She got all in my face and said I should stop dressing like Laura Ingalls. We were both right and we have been friends since then. We are always brutally honest with each other. I can tell her things that I would never tell Mary Lou and it's mostly because I would not want to be judged about it.

Lu is wild and brash sometimes but it is mostly a front. She is a sweetie pie and she is loyal. Her new thing is that she is doing a second virginity. I asked her is that what she is calling her dry spell and she tried to punch me, but I ducked. Go training. She chased me around for ten minutes before we stopped and laughed. Guess what? We were not out of breath either. Since it is cold, we are doing our shooting lessons now. I love you. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-Lu took me to visit her grandmother after exams. She said fair is fair. Miss Bea is a character and she raised Lu when her mother 'ran off with some trifling no good nappy headed n-word'. She cooks like on soul food and she taught us how to make monkey bread and some other cool desserts. Lu told her we were on a food plan and Miss Bea told her she could plan to eat what was put in front of her or she could plan to go to the Waffle House or something, because she was not changing how she did things in her kitchen.

It was a little hard to learn her recipes because she would not write anything down and she did not measure. She cooked by taste. She is crazy and I can see where Lu got her blunt attitude from. When I showed her your picture, she said you were right nice for a little Mexican boy and that if you did not treat me right, I should make you some hot grits. Lu's uncles shuddered when she said it, so behave yourself, Mateo.

We went line dancing and to bingo and we won the jackpot. It was $100K for the holidays. We gave 25% to the Salvation Army and split the rest three ways. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.


	6. Chapter 6

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for future scenes.**

 **Thank you for reading and reviewing.**

 **Month 6**

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-I love you. Lu decided that we should go to a party for New Year's Eve and we got dressed in party dresses and went to the Crowne Plaza and it was a great time. We also got many contacts because the event was billed as being for urban professionals.

There were multiple rooms and different kinds of music. Lu had a ball and I barely got her home in one piece. It seems there were a couple of gentlemen who thought Lu wanted to give them a dance on their 'magic stick' and they wanted her to go with them.

She pulled a Gram and groped both of them and said 'please, more like magic twig' and fell out laughing. She kept telling people that they were small and that got their actual dates angry. Lu said they should be mad at having men that cannot satisfy them. Curse words, put downs and hair pulling ensued. Lu drank a lot and she will be paying for it in the morning, well, later this morning. I will take care of her. Happy New Year. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-We are being trained by these retired army guys that we met at the New Year's Party and we are learning to pick locks. You know that gave Lu the bright idea that we should practice on different places. She would knock on people's door and ask if she could practice picking their locks and 1 out of 3 people told her to go for it. Of course she came with gift cards to the Waffle House, but still.

You should see where this is going by now, love. If the people were not home, she would try to do it and leave the gift cards. I was the lookout. Well, it turns out that this one man, Gerald Hanes was at home, but was ignoring the door because he hates sales people and when Lu opened his door, he was shall we say, getting his porn on.

We stood there looking at him and he looked at us, then we all looked at his big screen television that was showing some particularly racy scenes. Lu explained about our class and the guy was cool. We gave him the gift card and left even though he offered us a drink.

He had not tried to cover himself once during that whole conversation. Lu said he was proud of his size. Whatever. No, I will not tell you his size. I will say that I don't understand why he only had porn for company. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

 **Month 7**

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-Lu says unless something drastic happens, I should send you an email every other week, or two a month. She said no one wants to read about every little thing and if I told you all of my news now, we would have nothing to talk about later. I hate her for being right. I miss you, and I do have a mind of my own. Lu takes my advice, too.

Just the other day, she decided to finally stop dying her hair. Now she will let it remain her different shades of reddish auburn and brown. I agreed that she should get micro braids for the rest of the winter and then unveil her new hair style when the weather breaks. We are still doing our training and we run every day.

Gram called and said that Dickie was now getting married to some girl he went to college with. Gram said my mother offered the dresses to Dickie's mother from my cancelled wedding and the woman took them. That is crazy. I feel for the poor girl having a second hand plantation wedding. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-It is not fair that you sent me a card for Valentine's Day with spa gift certificates for me and Lu and I cannot send you anything. Lu said I can buy you something and keep it until you come home. Then she told me to stop whining and make our appointments. Anyway, thank you for being thoughtful.

Lu thinks that she needs an edge over other people, so she had color contacts now that turn her brown eyes a pretty lighter brown. I will not admit it to her, but she now looks striking and more feminine. I was against her doing it, but she called Gram and Miss Bea and they both told her to go for it and if she poked her eye out, that was all on her.

If you are checking the time stamp on this email, you may wonder why it is so late that I am writing. That is because we decided we would not mope today and we volunteered at a soup kitchen all day. It was a moving experience and we have added that and the Salvation Army as other items on our calendar. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

 **Month 8**

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-It is official, I am on birth control. Lu decided that we should both get the shots starting now so we would be used to the hormones and all of that. Enough about that. My sister had her baby and it is a girl that she named Mary Alice. Yup, she named my niece a nun's name.

Anyway, she is distraught because the baby will not breastfeed. Gram told me that she said maybe the baby does not want to drink the koolaid. She is funny. I looked that up and there is nothing wrong with the baby, some just do not want the breast. Personally, I think it is good that the kid is already being different. Gram said she will keep an eye on her. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-This is all your fault. We got our weapons licenses and Lu wanted to get new guns since the ones we have are from you and from some guy named Pookie who was from the west side. We bought guns and now Lu threatens to shoot anyone that pisses her off.

Today that happened to be the cop that gave us a parking ticket. I told Lu that you cannot threaten a cop and that it was my car anyway. I told the cop that we were on new birth control and it made our hormones really crazy. It was an older cop and he agreed not to arrest Lula but made her promise not to bust a cap in anyone's ass unless it was in defense of herself or another person. She hugged him and apologized. We did not even go pub crawling to drink green beer.

When we got back to her house, Lula burst into tears. She begged me to visit her in jail if that ever happened. I just hugged her and made us both some hot chocolate. Miss Bea said maybe we should use the rhythm method and then she said never mind because she knows I would mess it up. I think she insulted me a little bit. I love you. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

 **Month 9**

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-Happy Birthday, love. Not much new is going on here, but I miss you. I will tell you that I have a whole new appreciation for you people that get up with the roosters. Lu's new schedules have us getting up at 0500 to get our runs in and still complete our grueling schedule every day.

I think Lu is secretly Hermione Granger or something. You should see our calendar. It is a huge dry erase board that Lu updates and says that we must follow it. We are doing something right, because we have been acing our classes. I am proud of myself for getting closer to having my degrees.

I am in much better physical shape and my stamina has improved greatly. I might be able to keep up with you the next time we pull an all-nighter, love. Heh heh. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-Gram came to visit us on her way back from Mardi Gras. I told her that was a month ago and she said so what? Then she admitted that she took the trip just to see us and to have fun with Lu because my mother is driving her crazy and she needed an excuse to get away. Mr. Grisham confirmed that they did groundbreaking on our homes so yay! He also said no one has contacted him about you, so I remain hopeful that you are alright.

Gram did not get into too much mayhem this visit. Besides daring us to go topless in the yard, she has been pretty tame. She went to volunteering with us and said she will do that when she went back home. We spent time line dancing and we found a scrabble club. Lu was in heaven because she said sometimes her brain does not shut off and now she has a new favorite thing to do.

Gram taught me to crochet, so I have started to work on squares that she said I can join and make into a huge blanket. No I am not turning into an old lady, but I have to keep busy. I miss your eyes and your hugs.

Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

 **Month 10**

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-Lu changed her hair style to soft curls. Her hair really grew! So did mine, but I only got the ends clipped. Lula made me burn the hair they cut. I told her magic is not real and she told me to shut up. She is so funny. I have been listening to audio books while we run instead of music and that helps to keep my mind occupied.

This month's challenge is to cultivate our contacts so we have spent the allotted time in our schedules making friends with the personal shopper girls, the perfume girls and the makeup girls at Sak's. They are interesting and they had good advice. I told you Lu is smart! She gave them hints, too and now we have people we can call to help us with our business because they are now Facebook friends with Lu and they told their counterparts about us.

It has been almost six months since I heard from you. I miss you so much. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

From: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

To: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

Mitch-I miss you, love. The guys and I are safe and none of us are hurt. I have read all of your emails and I smile to think about you having these experiences with your friend. Your safety is important. Please do not do B&E anymore unless you have to. I wonder if I will recognize the girl that danced with me on the beach with all of the training and exercising you have been doing?

You will not believe this, but the guys went out for R&R and they tried to set me up. Jayson is a nice guy who thought the guys were pranking him until I explained things to him. He is actually one of our contacts and Ranger found out he was gay. It snowballed from there.

I told the guys that I am faithful to my Mitch and there is no one else for me. They just shook their heads at me. I have been working out as well. Maybe it is you who will not recognize me!

So, we will move on to the final phase of our mission soon. I will be in touch at least once a month. Never give up hope, Mitch and I am glad you liked my surprises. I love you, girl. Take care of my beautiful badass wife. She is my world.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo- I am so glad you and the guys are alright. Your friends are so silly. You must seem so lonely, love. When I see you again, be prepared to be kissed nonstop for at least an hour. Okay, maybe not an hour, but I will definitely be all over you. I am still working on the crochet squares and our exams are coming up. Our training is going well, too. I dream about you and your hugs. I miss them.

I am convinced that Lu is the good angel on my shoulder because she argued with me about where to park when we went to the mall the other day and I relented. When we came out of the mall, the car parked where I wanted to park was rear ended badly by a delivery truck and the back of it was folded like an accordion. I know, right? Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

 **Month 11**

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo- We are going on a trip to Cancun. Lu says there should be none of that Girls Gone Wild mess going on there. The reason for the trip is that we aced our exams again and we only have one year left until we have our degrees! Lu promised not to drink and to guard me if I did the same for her.

She is convinced that you will have a soldier boy for her and she wants a guy that will appreciate how bootylicious she is, too, so write that down. When we get back, we are starting yoga since we finished the krav maga classes. We are keeping judo because we like it. I will be in touch with another update in the crazy life of me. I miss you. Be safe and remember your promise to me. Love always, your Mitch.

From: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

To: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

Mateo-You haunt my dreams, you know. I replay our moments together and I get so hot. I can still remember the way you touched me. You played my body like your very own instrument and I cannot wait for your next concert, Mateo. I want you to come home to me safely so I can spend time making love to you.

I want to learn every place on your body that makes you shiver, that makes you moan and that makes you say my name. You have to be alright so we can spend our lives together. I love you, Mateo and I miss my husband. Don't forget your promise to me, love. I am yours and you are mine. Love always, your Mitch.

From: SkeeballKing ****mail.***

To: GoKartsQueen ****mail.***

Mitch-I miss you, love. Girl, you are so sexy. You know you are the woman of my dreams. It has been too long since I tasted you, since I made you pant and moan for me, girl. It should be understood that I will make it my business to show you all the ways I have missed you when I return. You don't even have to worry. We may need a week or two before I will be satisfied with our welcome home festivities.

I am a very lucky man to have you for my wife. I know it is not easy, Mitch, with us being away from each other like this, but it must be done. This is an important assignment and we are more than halfway to its completion. Don't give up hope, girl. I am coming home to you. I want to see that pretty smile again. I am yours Mitch. Take care of my wife because she is my world.


	7. Chapter 7

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for future scenes.**

 **I did not want to drag out their reunion, so here it is.**

 **Thank you for reading and reviewing.**

 **One Year Later**

 **Stephanie POV**

I let my thoughts wander as I completed my run around the property with Lu. We are in great shape now and we can fight, throw knives, pick locks, pick pockets, shoot guns and we know stealth. Well, it would be stealth if we wore black. We both hate to be in all black even though it is necessary at times.

I listen to the sounds of my breath, my feet hitting the stone pathway, and I can feel my hair bouncing even in a ponytail. These past few months have been eventful. For one thing, we are officially licensed consultants and we have our degrees.

We moved to Pennington, NJ, which is about 8 miles outside of Trenton, but it was far enough away that I had my buffer zone. We had been here for two months. When our degrees were completed, Lu completed the sale of her home in ATL and paid off her mortgage here. She had the money; she just wanted to create a good credit portfolio. Whatever. I let her and Mr. Grisham haggle about all of that. I just shopped for furniture and decorated my home.

I still sent emails to my husband and he sent them back. He said they were in phase three of the mission. That was a couple of months ago. I will keep the faith and I will probably keep shopping. We are looking at a few spaces to open our center. We are calling our consulting business Shell&Ivy. Ivy is Lula's middle name. I send off one more email to Mateo. I give him the address here so he can just show up whenever he is free. I miss him so much!

Workout finished, we nodded at each other and separated to go into our homes and shower and change. We had to finalize our advertising and choose a location today. I wonder what Mateo is doing right now.

 **Lester POV**

The guys wanted to leave in a couple of days, but I was leaving now. It was a week since I got the last email from Mitch and I could not wait anymore. I felt like the walls were closing in on me. It was 0340 and I was finished packing. It would take all of my skills to get away clean. I ordered the taxi to pick me up a block from here. I just could not take it anymore. The guys were going out at night and clubbing. They met women and all of that. I declined. That is not my scene.

They don't know I am married, but they know I love Mitch. How can the guys expect me to stick around here any longer than necessary? I crave my wife. It is like there is a deep hunger inside me that nothing will sate. I have thought nonstop about having her in my arms. She sent me the address and I am the fuck out of here. I jump the fence and grab my bags. My flight is in two hours. I left the guys a note. Hopefully they would pack and join me in NJ.

I am successful and I make my flight. There is a bit of explaining when they get to my weapons, but my military id clears that up nicely. I sleep on the flight and dream of my beautiful wife. When I arrive at the line of waiting cabs, I question them until I get one who is willing to take a flat rate and not to write down the address.

He said whatever and for the $150 I was willing to pay him, as long as I was not a murderer, he did not care. I was eager the whole ride. When we finally got there, I got my first glimpse of her in two years and she is my goddess. I pay the cab driver and take out my bags. A dog barks and she just keeps dancing. Who does she think I am? Suddenly, in her dancing, she turns and sees me. My mouth goes dry. I love her dress and she looks so pretty.

 **Stephanie POV**

Another day of sunshine and I was dancing and watering my rose bushes. I planted roses that were just like the ones Lester gave me on our first date. Of course I was listening to Aretha Franklin and singing to 'Rock Steady' when I heard a car coming up the drive. As it turned the corner, I saw that it was a cab. It must be Gram. I went back to shaking my ass and singing.

My puppy, Romeo barked twice. My dog can count, so Gram brought someone with her. She did that sometimes, too. She liked going to the creek or sitting by the pool or on the back porch. She said my place was her hideout. She is so funny.

I was wearing a green sundress that came to my knees and matching wedged heels. I turned while dancing to a part of the song and I saw him. Standing ten feet from me, wearing a grey Army tee shirt and faded jeans was my husband. I let my eyes sweep over him from head to toe. He was gorgeous. He was tanned, muscled and he had a five o'clock shadow. He put his bags down and smiled at me.

"Come here, Mitch. Your dog does not know me and I don't want to be bitten." Oh, he is really here! I ran over to him and threw my arms around his shoulders. He supported my ass, so I jumped and wrapped my legs around his waist.

"Hey there, Soldier. I missed you." We stare at each other, and then we kiss and we take it slowly. Oh, he tastes like I remember. I pull away and bury my face in his neck. Tears leak out of my eyes.

"Shhh, Baby. I am here now and I am early! Tomorrow is the anniversary of the date I met you, Beautiful. Give me my ring, and stop hogging it." I smile and take the chain off and give him his ring back.

I kiss Les again. "Oh, Baby. I missed your beautiful smile. The house looks just like in your emails. I am so proud of you!" He swings me around.

"You got your degrees!" I smile and hold onto him.

"Did you and Lula really get black belts?" A gun cocks behind him.

"Yup and I don't know you, so get off my girl before I shoot you." I giggle.

"Lula, this is Lester. Lester this is Lula." They smile and Lula hugs him.

"Girl, he is so fucking dreamy. Get me one!" I laugh at her.

"You know it is your turn to cook." She hates cooking breakfast. It is always my turn.

I smile and pull Les into the house. In the kitchen, I change my music to Beyoncé.

"Les, where are the other members of your crew?" He smiles devilishly.

"I ditched them, Mitch. They would not leave me alone. We have been stateside for three months, but we had to debrief for two of those months, then Carlos worked out a deal with his cousin Diego and they are incorporating and building another branch of what will be called Rangeman here in Trenton."

"Why not just buy a building?" Les frowns.

"They don't know much about the town, so they decided to build a new building." I shake my head and so does Lula.

"Call him and tell him I know of three locations he can try and if he needs an investor, we might be interested." Les smiles.

"Okay, Baby." He makes his call while I cooked breakfast and I sit on his lap when I am done.

"Did you sign another contract, Les?" He shakes his head.

"No, Mitch. I am only available for consults or training and I remain stateside." I kissed him again and we took it French.

"Well, that is my cue. I am being nice and getting ghost for a while. Me and Gram are going to swim and all that. Come outside at your own peril." She says that to Lester. He laughs and kisses me again.

"Ahem." I look up at Lu. "Girl, husband or not, we are running in the morning." I nod at her. We have a routine. We still run every morning. I have straddled his lap by the time the front door closes.

Les carries me to bed and we stay there for the rest of the day. He makes the food runs and I try out many of the fantasies I have had about him. We take a bath together and talk. Well, we kiss and talk. I cannot believe he is here.

Of course, we make love in the tub. Talk about slippery. His hair is just a little longer, but it still looks sexy and disheveled. He is incredible and he is all mine! We sleep with our bodies entwined together. I don't even get mad when he wakes me at 0200 and again at 0400.

I had to sneak out of bed to meet Lu at 0500 for our run. We were in camo tee shirts and cargo shorts and boots. We were armed with our guns and a knife each. She left Juliet home and I left Romeo with Les. We stretched and talked before our run. Lu said that Gram would be back on the weekend and said it looked like I could still walk fine and wasn't I glad I took yoga. I winked at her and said hell yes. We were taking the five mile route today, which was two and a half miles up and back. We watched each other's back and for the last mile, we raced.

Today I was not even upset that Lu beat me, but when I reached the front of our combined driveway, I saw she had company. Muscular company. She had two guys down on the ground and two more guys held her at gunpoint. The last guy was checking her out. Heh heh.

I cock my gun and clear my throat. They look at me. "Hello. Nice weather we are having here, isn't it, gentlemen?" They just glare at me.

I pick the one that must be Ranger. "Hello, Ranger. Why are you holding my friend at gunpoint?" He looks shocked that I know his name. He gives me a once over and I roll my eyes.

"Sorry, hombre. I am taken and that would be a little like incest, anyhow. Stop making Lu mad before she shoots your friends. You must be tired from traveling. Come on inside and I will fix breakfast."

Lu finally speaks up. "I know that's right and I won, so I get red today. You take blue." She stands up and puts her gun in her ankle holster. I do the same with mine. She goes into her home and I motion the guys to follow me inside. I show them the guest rooms on the second floor and I take a shower.

"Mateo, baby, wake up." He moans and reaches for me. I let him catch me. We kiss, but I stop him before he takes off my robe.

"I have to cook breakfast. Take a shower. We have company. I love you, Les." He grins and I wonder how fast a quickie is. He laughs because I said that out loud.

"Not quick enough, Mitch. Go ahead. I will be down, love." I dress in a robin's egg blue mini sundress and use my thigh holsters for my gun and my knife and I leave my hair down with a blue checkered headband and I put on my matching 6"blue heels and take the dog with me to the kitchen.

I am dancing to "Shake your ass" by Mystikal when Ranger and the guys come into my overly large kitchen. They sit down at the table and I give all of them juice and start placing bowls of food on the table. When I am finished, Lu comes into the kitchen.

"Good, I am right on time, just like always, Girl." She sits down next to one of the black guys. It is the one that did not draw on her. She smiles at him and he swallows. I giggle.

"So, Ranger, how are you feeling?" He blinks at me.

"I am fine. I was given this address by our friend. Have you seen him? You know me, but I do not know you." I smile and get up and hug him.

"Yes, Lester is here. He stayed the night. I know he is your cousin. I am Stephanie. That is my best friend Lula. Relax and eat." I know it is killing them that they really do not know who I am. Hee hee. I hear footsteps, so I pour another glass of juice and get another empty plate. Les comes into the kitchen and the guys start messing with him.

"Here is the invisible man." That was from Tank I think. He is the tallest.

"Damn, man. You must have missed Mitch a lot to do a Houdini on us like that." That was Bobby. It was logical. He was the only other black guy.

"You could have told me you wanted to leave, Lester. I would have understood." That is from Ranger.

"Cuz, I needed to get here to see Mitch." He smiles and takes the juice from me and drinks most of it and sets the glass down.

Ranger smirks at Lester. "Well, where is he? Is he still in bed?" Lula laughs loudly.

Lester walks over to me and pulls me to my feet and bends me backwards into a steamy kiss and I cling to him. We both moan and deepen the kiss.

"Girl, stop it! I am trying to eat and you are making me think things. One of these army men is about to be my new toy, okay!" I tap Les so he lets me go. He turns to his cousin and the rest of the guys.

"This is my wife, Stephanie Michelle Santos. Her middle name is Michelle and I call her Mitch." He glares at I guess Axe.

"I am not gay. I have nothing against that lifestyle, but I am in love with my wife. Ramsey, stop looking at her ass, man. I will let her shoot you." Ram stops checking me out.

"When did you get married, Lester?" We sit down with me in his lap and feed each other while Lester explains.

He tells them how we met and that he saved my life and as payment I agreed to marry him. I smacked his head.

"Tell it right!" He kisses me.

"Girl, you know I saved you from a life in hell. You saved me right back. You gave me a reason to come home. I love you, Mitch." Awww. We kiss again. Lula talks to the guys.

"So, which one are you, Cutie? I like that you did not make me draw my gun on you." Bobby grins at her.

"I am Bobby Brown, Lula." She giggles at his name.

"Are you a ho, Bobby?" He looks offended. Lula looks at Lester and gives him the raised eyebrow. He gives her a thumbs up.

"Fine, what are you good at?" He licks his lips at her and she shivers.

"No, I mean combat type skills. Stop flirting with me." He straightens up.

"I am a doctor, so I served as the medic. I have army ranger skills girl. I cannot tell you everything, because then I would have to kill you." She winks at him and throws a knife at him that hits the back of his chair near his head.

He looks at the knife and exhales.

"I think I am in love." I snort.

"Tallulah, you will replace my chair if you do that again!" She sucks her teeth and stands up.

"Bitch, please. I know you and Green Eyes over there have put a hurting on some of this furniture already. That is if he let your ass out of the bedroom." Lester shakes his head at her and she laughs.

"Oh, I spoke too soon. It will happen." She takes Bobby's hand.

"Listen, I am glad you are a doctor. I went running this morning and I think I pulled something. Can you take a look at it and maybe help me get my alignment back and all that shit?" Bobby gets up and pulls her close.

"Sure thing, Miss Lula. I will come with you so you can show the Doctor where it hurts. Let me just grab my bag and I will be right back down." He kisses her cheek and she watches him leave. I don't blame her. Bobby is tall, has a complexion like light chocolate and his hair is all wavy. He has grey eyes!

"Girl, now I understand your little romance with Green Eyes. I will be back around lunchtime and cook, then we can all talk about the business venture. Let the boys play by the pool or whatever." Bobby comes back and they race out the back door.

I turn to the guys and smile. "We can hang out by the pool or you guys can play basketball or watch movies in the media room. It is up to you. I am going to clean up the kitchen." They thanked me and left the kitchen. Les moved behind me and kissed my neck.

"Let me help, Mitch." I turn and kiss him again.

"I love you. Go play and I will be along soon. I need to take Romeo out anyway." He kisses me again and bites my neck. That's gonna leave a mark. I watch him walk away to play with Ranger and the guys. He is delicious looking and he is home! I am so happy right now.


	8. Chapter 8

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for future scenes.**

 **Thank you for reading and reviewing.**

 **Stephanie POV**

Since the guys decided to hang out by the pool, I dressed in a turquoise blue halter bikini top with a bikini bottom that was skirted. It was more like a ruffle, but it was the thought that counted. I had my terry cloth cover-up and my matching wedges on.

I was stopped from going outside by someone clearing their throat. I turned to see Ranger. He was wearing black swim trunks and a sleeveless white tee shirt. He was very handsome when he smiled. He was not smiling. I had my weapons in my bag. Hmmm. What is wrong with him, I wonder.

"Yes, Ranger?" He gives me a nod and gestures to the side patio. I follow him and we stand there staring at each other. Finally he speaks.

"I know that you care about Lester, but you do not know what kinds of people we are. If you have some sort of fantasy about this relationship being all hearts and flowers, you will be disappointed. We have done many things that we are not proud of in the name of our country." He is still blank faced. I step forward and hug him.

"Thank you. I know it must have been hard. Do you think that maybe you should see someone about those dark feelings you are holding onto?" He takes a breath and lets it out.

"Maybe. What about how you feel about my cousin?" I smile and step away from him.

"You do not have to worry about that, Ranger. I love Lester. He has my heart and I have his. I meant my wedding vows and I waited for him to come home. Now that he is here, I will take each day with him as a blessing. I am in it for the long haul. I won't hurt him." He finally smiles and hugs me back. Good.

"We are good at what we do and it is because of you that Lester did not sign another contract. He convinced us all to get out and that we can build a company with our skills. Thank you for that. It is easy to get sucked in because of the money, but you miss so much time." I nod at him.

"Okay, so now will you stop looking at me all suspiciously?" He puts an arm around my shoulder and leads me towards the pool.

"Sure, Steph. You are good for Lester and he is completely in love with you. You were all he talked about. I am eager to hear your ideas about the company. You can call me Ric. The guys do and like you said, we are family now." I grin at him and spot Mateo in the pool. He sees me and throws the ball back to Tank and gets out.

"Hey there, are you trying to make off with my wife, Ric?" He playfully punches Ranger.

"No, we just had a talk. I hope she has a friend for me, though." I giggle.

"Please. If you aim that smile at any woman, they will come willingly." He smiles.

"Yes, but I want a quality woman, not just someone who likes my looks. Now let's play water polo." We do just that and the guys are good at this of course. My team loses, but Ram and Axe do not hold it against me.

After another costume change, we settle in the family room near the kitchen. Lula has banned us until she is finished cooking. She gets like that sometimes, but I know it is because she cannot keep her hands off of Bobby. He keeps looking at her and she is dancing while she cooks. We both do that.

I am on Mateo's lap and we are kissing. The guys throw pillows at us to get us to stop. "Come on, Steph. Tell us your thoughts about our business."

"You guys, you should buy a building and then customize things. It is cheaper and quicker. We turned down a few properties while we were looking for a place, but there is one that shares a backyard so to speak with our business. If you guys bought that one, it would be great. There are three floors of apartments and there is even a sub-basement. There is even a parking garage. Lu and I did not need a dungeon and we live here, so that building was just overkill for us. You should take a look at it. I can call Savanna and see if she can show you guys later today."

They have an eye conversation and nod at me. Good. "Come eat, y'all!" We gather at the table and I notice the guys look leery. Lula huffs and sits down. I look at Mateo and he is dishing up food and so is Bobby.

"Okay, Ric, what is the deal?" He gives me a weak smile.

"It is just that we do not eat so much bread. We are on a food plan." Lu and I crack up laughing and she tells him to eat it or plan to go hungry. They bite into it and all of them moan. I give Lu a high five.

"Girl, I got it!" She had been trying to get Miss Bea's recipe right. I am happy for her.

"Lu, the guys want to see the building that is behind ours." She nods while she eats.

"That is the bomb. Savanna is going to buy us a cake or something for bringing her all of these fine men to look at. If she touches my man, though, she will pull back a nub." I laugh at her. She looks pretty in her red and white halter top with a short ruffled red skirt and heels. I am dressed similarly but in teal blue.

"Lula, this is delicious. Sometimes I forget we are not still enlisted. I guess I can be a little strict. May I have more, please?" She sucks her teeth at him, but gives Ric more and she relents and brings out the tossed salad as well. They attack the rest of the food and soon it is time to leave to meet Savanna.

Savanna Reynolds is a no nonsense mixed race ex socialite that has her own agency despite her trust fund. She said she would make sure people took her seriously. Lu and I liked her immediately. Lu liked that she was part black and part white so we could share her. She is hilarious. Savanna greets us both with hugs, and then she gets a glazed look on her face. I turn and see that the guys are standing behind us and that she is staring at them and licking her lips.

"Down girl. Two of them are taken. Don't make me and Lu fight you." She giggles and introduces herself to the guys and I see that Tank likes her for her height. She is tall without heels. The heifer. We follow her around the building and I know by the time we reach the penthouse that the guys like it.

"So do y'all like the building or what?" She is looking at Tank again. Ranger clears his throat and speaks for all of them.

"Yes, how soon can we have it inspected and all of that?" She preens.

"I already did all that, hun. I don't sell anything that is not the best. Now let's meet at my office tomorrow and iron out the paperwork. Here is my card but the girls have my number, too. See you all later!" She walks to her car with Tank following her.

"Another one bites the dust." Mateo is funny. We kiss again. We really cannot keep our hands off each other.

"Mitch, will you meet my family?" I look at him. Behind him, Carlos is nodding. Fine. If they are like mine, I am leaving.

"Sure, you have not talked about them much, Mateo." He smiles.

"I thought families were a touchy subject for you, love. You will love Mama and Tia Maria and Tio Ricardo. You know Ric is named after his father." I just smile and nod.

"We are all due to be there tomorrow night, Mitch so you have time to plan your wardrobe with Lu. I know you want to. Let's get into the cars. What do you want for dinner?" I snuggle with him in the backseat. Ranger is driving the Escalade.

"I think we should go out. We can have dinner and then we can go dancing, Mateo. What do you think, Ric?" He sighs and shakes his head.

"Can we go dancing another night? I have no desire to see these fools hung over tomorrow and we need to get our plans together, Steph." He makes sense.

"Okay, but that means after dinner we can have a Call of Duty competition. Lu and I are great at that game. We are even better at poker." He laughs.

"I like you, Steph." I smile.

"Good. You can give me the scoop on the family later. Your turn is coming up." He gets us back to the house and we all split up to get ready for dinner. They all voted and decided on the Crab Shack, so we will be in jeans.

I would be in a cute denim skirt and a baby blue tee shirt that says "I got a man" on it. I have matching baby blue sparkly heels and I am leaving my hair down. Mateo is wearing an army tee shirt and dark blue jeans. He tops it with a dark blue button down shirt that he wears open.

Lu is in a black denim cargo skirt and a bright red asymmetrical top. We both have our weapons. I tried to hide my trepidation, but she hugged me and said, "Girl, you know I will bust a cap in someone's ass if they step to you wrong. Now you have your husband and all these fine men. Let's have a good time." I love her. It was time to face the Burg, and I am ready. They can bring it on.

At the Crab Shack, we get two tables and have a feast of corn on the cob, sweet potato fries, and of course cracked crabs. Tank gets teased for getting shot by Cupid's arrow and he does not deny it. We were drinking iced tea and laughing at a story Ram was telling about writing on Lester's face when he fell asleep one time when we were ambushed.

"I thought for sure the calls I was getting were lying, but here you are surrounded by all of these men and acting like a scarlet woman! Stephanie Michelle Plum, where have you been! The whole family has been worried about you!" I wonder how she got here. She is bobbing and weaving drunk. I lean back in my seat.

"Actually, mother, Gram knows where I have been and I have spent time with her often. That is not my name, either. This is my husband, Lester Santos. We have been happily married for two years now." The room gets quiet when I say that and show her my rings. My mother stares at them for a long moment before I continue to talk.

"You are making a scene and you are not making a good impression on your son-in-law. Why don't you get someone to drive you home and stop giving these people something to gawk at?"

"But, he, but you" She sputters for a few minutes before she responds with, "How could you marry an outsider?!" No she did not. Lula gets to her feet and aims her gun. I reach over to stop her and wrestle her to the floor. My mother cannot believe she almost got shot and she backs into the table, but she misses and falls to the floor.

She gasps and looks around sees all of the people staring and moves to get up, but she had been holding onto the tablecloth and the whole thing moves with her and she gets covered in crab shells and everything. Even through all of that, I can hear the why me.

I tell Lu that the cops here would not be on her side, so she puts her gun away.

I call Gram and she agrees to send my father to pick her up. We pay the bill and Axe and Ram wait inside until my mother gets picked up and then we all leave to go home. That could have been worse. She could have knocked everything over before we finished eating. I think I won that round of me against the Burg, though.

I send several text messages to Gram to give her the real scoop and she responds that she is on it. At the house, the guys set up the game and they are in awe of me and Lu with our tactics. Heh heh. We used to play with retired soldiers. We beat them and I go to bed feeling like I am the bomb.

"Mitch, I do not want you to feel nervous about meeting my mother and my aunt and uncle. They will love you, trust me." I kiss him and continue to undress him.

"Mateo, I love you, but if your mother is like mine, I will leave you there." He laughs and tickles me. I run for the shower and he catches me inside and slams me against the wall and kisses my neck while he grabs my legs to rest them around his waist.

"Are you ready, Mitch?" His eyes are such a dark green right now. He looks so powerful, but he is still being gentle with the way he is holding my hips. I want it and I want it rough.

"Yes, Mateo. Give it to me. Don't hold back." He does not hold back. We spend almost a half hour in the shower before we move our little party to the bed. I love my husband.

Before I can fall asleep, I hear a scratching at the door. I get up and let Romeo inside the bedroom. He jumps up onto the chest at the foot of the bed and goes to sleep on his blanket. He even has a pillow. My dog is spoiled. Les laughs and we cuddle and go back to sleep.


	9. Chapter 9

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for future scenes.**

 **Thank you for reading and reviewing.**

 **Lester POV**

I love my wife, I really do, but this is cruel and unusual punishment right here. I cannot believe that I let Mitch talk me into this. She said we needed to cultivate contacts in town and she gave each of us a list of people to talk to. I got Mrs. Green at the Tasty Pastry and this woman can talk.

Mitch and Lula had been right about everything else. They helped us to choose uniforms and they helped us to pick out cars. They helped us to decide to get Tia Ella to come and help with laundry and cooking. She was bored and she liked to take care of us anyway. She had loved Mitch when we visited them.

Mama and Papa insisted that we have a large party next weekend and Mitch agreed once she saw that my family loved her. Please, they fell in love with our story and Mama and Tia Ana cried. She said she wished that Ric would find someone to love. He told her he would try and she hugged him. Mitch showed them pictures of us together and our wedding pictures and she was golden according to my mother's expression.

That was the other day. Now I am still in this bakery and Mrs. Green is telling me about her niece. I need to stop her right there.

"Mrs. Green, I am married. I married Stephanie Plum. She is Stephanie Santos now. We have been married for two years tomorrow." She gasped and hugged me.

"Oh, Little Boy anybody that loves Stephanie is a friend of mine. Now go on and give me your number and you take mine. I like you. Here, take a dozen Boston Crème Donuts home to that beautiful girl." We exchanged numbers and I left after paying for the donuts.

I just keep chanting to myself. I love my wife. I hope she is okay. She was dressed like she was invading a small town, but feminine. She had looked beautiful and badass and I wanted to fuck her brains out, but she ran out of the house telling Ranger that she had to come with him. They were going to Stark Street. She promised to call me with any problems. So far there had been no calls. I love my wife.

 **Stephanie POV**

This guy does not know it, but I let him get me on the ground. I wore a short skirt and knee boots for a reason. He pulled my arms over my head and leaned in close. It was time to talk.

"Orlando, you may want to think about what you are doing, I mean have you heard of Ranger?" He did stop and he looked around. Several of his crew were missing from where they had been watching. He was the leader of the Hearts, a gang that just about ran Stark Street.

"Why do you bring up Ranger, White Bitch?" I smiled up at him. Orlando "Ozone" Menendez was the gang leader. He also needed a tic tac or something.

"It's just that he would be a little upset that you would not talk to me all polite you know. He would be pissed that you tried to hurt me, Orlando. He has sent men away in a box for less. I am his family, you know and family is important."

He looks around again and even more of his crew is missing. I take his distraction and bring my head up under his chin and leave him dazed while I flipped us over and had my gun at his crotch with my knife at his throat.

"You can come out now, Ranger. I think Orlando wants to talk to me nicely now, right Orlando?" We had a crowd that came out when Ranger came out. All he did was glare at Orlando and the poor guy pissed himself.

"You alright, Shell?" I smiled at him.

"Yup, I am cool. Orlando was just going to tell me that he would love to be your new friend. Isn't that right, Orlando."

A member of his crew did not get the message and yelled. "Bitch, Ozone don't answer to no snatch!" I threw my knife in his direction and he screamed.

"Be a good boy and bring me my knife back. Do you want me to let Ranger hurt you? Don't you see that more than half of your little crew is missing?" He whimpered and brought me back the knife after he took it out of his shoulder.

"Wipe it off, man." He wiped it on his shirt.

Suddenly, Ozone was our new best friend. He decided that he would respect Ranger and that they would cool it with the violence and if Ranger needed information, he would make sure that he had it. Ranger just nodded and escorted me back to the car. The guys guarding it nodded at Ranger and we got inside and drove back to the house.

"You are a brave woman, Steph." I smiled.

"Naw. I knew you had my back and Hector was there. Did you talk to him? Is that what took you so long?" Ranger laughed.

"Si, Steph. We talked and he said he will come by the building tomorrow. He has some ideas about wiring our cameras and all of that. You were right, he is smart." I grinned.

"I told you! Anyway, I am so hungry right now!" He laughed.

"You do love your food. So you won that argument. You got the streets to be afraid of me and I did not have to do anything but put those guys to sleep. That was easy. I guess I will take your advice on our paint colors for the office. My choices were more functional." I giggled.

"Your colors were like a hospital or a prison, Ric. Just trust me. I will not steer you wrong. Now when you tell Mateo, please do not mention that I was on the ground." He laughs loudly, but I am serious.

My husband was not going to appreciate a play by play of what happened. We arrived at the house, and my plan was to change my clothes really quickly and then I could eat. I ran to the bedroom and stripped on my way to the shower. My husband attacked from behind and I was sprawled on the bed under him with my face in the pillows.

My breathing picked up. "Hello, Mateo. Did you miss me, Baby?" He growled and suddenly he was inside me. Oh, well damn. He pulled me to my knees and I held onto the headboard.

"Mateo, is there a problem?" I panted out that question. His hand was in my hair pulling it slightly and his other hand was digging into my hip with a tight grip. He leaned over me and bit my neck.

"Mitch, did you let some asshole pin you to the ground and almost rape you in the middle of Stark Street and Ranger took out his whole gang single handedly and you were almost stabbed?" He sounds a little crazed.

The poor baby. He listened to the Grapevine. It is hard to be upset because what he is doing to me is so hot right now. I moan and climax hard which makes me collapse. He rolls me over and it does not take him long to resume thrusting. He is so good at this! I love when we are together like this. He looks so fierce and the way he is staring into my eyes.

"Answer me, love. Who do I have to kill?" Oh!

"Mateo, Baby, I had it under control. I was just stalling the leader so that Ranger could take out his crew. We basically scared him and I threw a knife at a guy. No one hurt me. I promised to call if there was a problem, remember? I keep my promises, especially to you." He kissed me over and over.

"Girl, Mrs. Green called me and said I had to save you. I assured her that you were alright because I knew that Ric would let us know otherwise, but I could not get it out of my head. I love you, Mitch. Oh, Baby, yes!" He finally let go.

We lay there for a long while before my stomach reminded us that I needed to eat. We raced to the shower and then we got dressed.

In the kitchen, Lu was dishing up a late lunch while arguing with Ric. I am telling you, Batman, you need a signature scent. One that the ladies will swoon about and that the guys will fear. We are going to Sak's so you can smell them and I can smell them on you. It will only hurt a little bit." He shook his head.

"Lula, if they smell me, then that is the opposite of stealth." She gave him a large salad with bean sprouts and other vegetables inside and fried calamari on top.

She gave the same thing to all of the guys and me but she gave me a grilled cheese with wheat bread and provologne and mozzarella cheese. Yum. I ate it so fast, I think that I inhaled it. Next she gave out smoothies and the guys all got fruit smoothies and I got chocolate and coffee.

"You don't need stealth, you need fear and you need people to talk about you, Batman." He sighs.

"At least can you stop calling me Batman?" The guys all laugh.

"Nope. You looked like Batman when you had on all of that gear and you were all scary riding in that Porsche. I knew I picked the right car for you! Go me!" She dances around a little.

"Mitch, why is she giving you more calories than us?" I look at Lu and she sits down and eats her food. She nods at me like it is up to me.

"I burn calories faster than normal and if I don't eat enough, it could make me pass out or something. I don't want to lose weight, so I eat more calories, but we try to make them good calories and I still work out and run. This past week since Mateo has been back, I lost four pounds and Lu is helping me to fix that. Nothing bad is going on." They all looked at Mateo.

"Damn, man. Give the woman a break sometimes." Les looked at Axe.

"Antonio, stop being jealous and eat your lunch. How did your meetings go?" Bobby smiled at Lu and then he answered.

"I went to St. Francis' and the nurses there were very very friendly. I told them that I had a girl and that I was faithful to her and they became like my best friends. They all want to be my informants. It was cool." Lu kisses his cheek and they share a look.

"Well, you got the easy assignment. Y'all sent me with Gram to go to the senior center. All of those older ladies asked to climb me." We laugh at Tank. "They said that they will make me a blanket and all like that, but they were cool after a while."

Ram speaks up next. "I had the kids' soccer game at the park. Those PTA moms are brutal to each other. When I told them that we were starting a new company here, they gave me lots of referrals but I have to avoid certain women because they cheat on their husbands or they have implants or they cook their casseroles with too much cheese. It was a madhouse. I felt like I was at a kissing booth. They were all lined up to talk to me. I think it is safe to say that the women of the Burg will be on our side."

Axe is last. He went to see Les Sebring. We were saving Vinnie for last. "I met with Mr. Sebring and he was all too happy to give us the contract for his FTAs. We agreed tentatively that we would start in two weeks and he gave me the contracts to show to our lawyer.

"That sounds great you guys. The police contacts will be the easiest. I know Eddie, Carl and Big Dog and they are cool. Eddie is the best out of the three and his wife Shirley gossips a lot, so he will always have the scoop. Now, do you want to meet Vinnie now or tomorrow, Ric?

He sighs and looks between me and Lula. "Does he really do things with a duck?" I nodded. He shivered.

"I will go with Lula to the mall and just meet him tomorrow." I bounce in my seat.

"Cool. Guys, we are going to the mall. Please dress normal and hide your weapons. You are allowed to smile at the mall. Lu and I will wait down here for you. If you are good at the mall, we can go to the carnival on the way back." There was a carnival at the mall in their parking lot. The guys cheered and got up and left. This was going to be so much fun!

 **Ranger POV**

Okay, I like Steph and she is smart, but I am going to strangle her. First she scared me on Stark Street, then she made her friend spray perfume at me until I could not smell anything anymore, now I am at a carnival surrounded by little kids and women keep coming onto me. I will look at Steph and she will give me a thumbs' up or make the motion like maybe. She has not given me the go ahead on any of these women and it is getting harder to stay polite while saying no thank you to what I know will be a one night stand.

Tank was supposed to have my back and I know he is somewhere eating cotton candy or something. I backed away from this really pushy woman and tripped and fell over another woman. I know poor me. I helped the woman I knocked over to her feet and she is amazingly pretty. She is Hispanic and her hair is light brown. She smiles at me and I look at Steph. She nods at me. Good.

"Hello. I am sorry to have knocked you over." She pouts at me.

"Sorry nothing, Rico Suave. You owe me a new funnel cake and I insist you win me a stuffed animal for my suffering." I smiled at her.

"That won't work, either, pretty boy. I want a funnel cake. Let's move it." I let her pull me towards the line. What was it with pushy women today? While we stood in line, I checked her out. She was 5'7" tall and she was wearing shoes Steph called wedges and a pretty yellow sundress.

"So, what is your name, Miss?" She smiled at me as I paid for her funnel cake.

She sighs. "My name is Madison Lopez. I am mixed. Do not flirt with me. I am looking for a job and that comes first." She eats the funnel cake and closes her eyes in delight.

"You know that stuff will kill you, right, Madison?" She narrows her eyes at me.

"So what? Do you know the kind of day I have had? No, you don't and I am not telling you because then you would just think I am some crazy woman who tells strange men her problems. What is your name, anyway?" I smile at her again.

"My name is Ricardo Manoso. You can call me Ric if you want, Madison." She shivered.

"Damn. I am going to need a lemonade. You are hot, Ric. Dial it down a little. I am just a woman and I will jump you." I laugh at her. She is funny and she does not seem scared of me.

"Come on, you find the animal you like and I will try to win it for you, and then we can get a lemonade to celebrate, Madison. What kind of work do you do, anyway?" She points to a large animal and I resign myself to spending many dollars at this booth that I know must be rigged. At least she picked a shooting game.

"I teach languages to kids and I am also certified to teach phys ed." I think of the girls and that maybe they can use her. I will run it by them. It takes me three tries, but I win the animal and then she makes me carry it. I can see Tank laughing at me, but I don't care. When she smiled at me and bounced up and down and hugged me, it felt kind of great. I look at her smile and I think, maybe.


	10. Chapter 10

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for some scenes and language. This is where my muse took me today.**

 **Thank you for reading and reviewing.**

 **Lester POV**

I was waiting for Mitch when she got out of the shower. I had flowers on the nightstand just like the ones I first gave to her. When she came out in just her robe, I swept her into my arms and kissed her. "Happy Anniversary, Baby." She giggled and squirmed to get loose so she could dry her hair.

"Thank you, Mateo. What do you have planned for today?" I grin at her.

"I thought we could ditch the guys and go to Point Pleasant. What do you think?" At that moment, Lula stuck her head into the room.

"I think hell no, Green Eyes. She is my girl and I want to celebrate, too. We are coming. The guys are right, you do talk in yo sleep. We will be waiting downstairs for our breakfast, so no getting freaky. You had all night, man." She leaves and Mitch giggles again.

My wife was a beautiful creature. She has dressed in a denim skirt and a peasant blouse with high blue wedge heeled shoes and her hair is in a ponytail. I just love that she wears my tags and my rings. Fine, the whole freaking crew could come with us.

"Mitch, why did you tell Lula about Point Pleasant?" She smiled at me.

"I want to show her where we fell in love and it is a fun town, Mateo. Do not be the guy who ditches his friends. We will have plenty of time to be old boring married people later. Now let's have fun!" Maybe she is right. We troop to the kitchen where Ric is talking on the phone and Tank is trying to eavesdrop on his conversation. I sit next to him to do the same.

"It is just a group of friends, Madison. No, we are not criminals. If you do not wish to come, that is fine. I will ask someone else. Oh, you were joking. Fine, then. We will pick you up. Yes I am good at skeeball. Well, we shall see. Bye, Madison. No I am not smiling. Fine, yes I am, now hang up." He hung up and smiled. Aww. I had to tease him.

"You know I beat Mitch in skeeball but she kicked my ass at go karts, Cuz. Be careful, you might fall for that girl. She is a tiny thing, huh?" He just continued to smile and he accepted his Belgium waffle with blueberries with a nod to Mitch.

She gave me mine with hot apples. I love my wife. I winked at her and she kept serving everyone. Lula's had pecans and peaches on it. Wow. That looked tasty. She looked at us and pulled her plate closer. Bobby tried to get a taste and she growled at him. Mitch gave him the same as Lula and he moaned out loud. Damn. I tasted mine and it was so delicious. Mitch sat down with hot peaches on hers and ate it and turkey sausage and drank her coffee while ignoring us.

"Lester, I love your wife." I looked at a dazed Antonio.

"Axe, you cannot have my wife." He sighed and finished eating. We joined forces to clean the kitchen while the girls fed the dogs, then we packed beach bags and headed out to the cars.

 **Ranger POV**

I was a little nervous. I had not had a real relationship and I was not sure what to do or when. I got out of the car and walked up to the door because Lula said just beeping the horn was rude as shit. Fine. These women are so bossy. Why aren't they afraid of me? I knocked on the door and it opened a crack.

"What is the password?" We had no password, so I thought about what she liked and said, "Funnel cake." She laughed and opened the door. She looked pretty in a yellow tee shirt and a cargo skirt with matching yellow heels. She handed her beach bag to me and locked her door. Her shoes made her a little taller.

"Hello, Madison. You look pretty." She smiled up at me.

"You know you look good, Rico Suave. Now smile and let's go so I can beat you at skeeball. Do you think your friends will like me? Tell me honestly." I took her hand. It was so small in mine. Maybe I would just follow her lead today and see what happened.

"Stop worrying. The girls like food and the guys like that you are not afraid of me. Just be yourself. You need a gun." She giggled.

"Who do you want me to shoot, Rico?" Anyone who smiles at you, I thought, but I did not say that.

"No one right now, but you may need it to defend yourself." She just grinned and showed me her gun that was in her pocketbook. Oh, well that is a surprise. I like surprises.

 **Stephanie POV**

I love my husband. He is being a good sport. I know that he loves spending time alone with me, but we cannot become a reclusive couple and it is the summer time. We will soon be working hard and for long hours. We need this time to relax and to center ourselves.

I watched Ric and Madison bicker and it was cute. She was totally trying to bully him and he would just swat at her like she was an annoying insect, but I could see in his eyes that he liked her. It was up to him how close they got. They were both at the teasing stage right now.

Just then, the sun was blocked by a huge shadow. I looked up to see my husband with a maniacal grin on his handsome face. Oh no. Yup, he picked me up and carried me kicking and screaming into the water. We splashed around together and kissed. Yeah, this is where I always want to be—in his arms.

"I love you, Mateo." He looked hot in his royal blue board shorts. He bit my bottom lip.

"I love you back, Mitch." We kissed until Lu decided that we should play volleyball. All in all, our day at the beach was just a relaxing good time. It was too bad the day had to come to a crushing halt when we got back to the houses. Gram was sitting on the porch waiting and she looked agitated.

"Gram, what is wrong?" She hugged me, and then she hugged Lu.

"Girlie, your mother had another drunken incident but this time she was at the bakery and she assaulted Grandma Bella. She got arrested and I don't know what to do with her. It turned into a food fight and she owes money for trashing the place." Wow.

"Grandma Bella and Angie Morelli both got arrested, too. I told your father that this was his problem now. Do you think I should have her committed or something?" I sat on one side of Gram and Lu took the other side. It was Madison that answered.

"Why don't you see if they can have her put into a treatment center for her alcoholism as a condition of not going to jail? I am Madison. Rico over there is my new friend. He may be more if he ever kisses me, but I will not be held responsible for what happens if that man French kisses me." Gram blinked at her, and then she laughed.

"I like you Maddie. Go ahead and kiss the Package." Madison jumps Ric and they disappear into the house. Okay then. I turn back to Gram.

"That was a good idea, Gram and this way she can get treatment and she would be out of both of our hair for the next ninety days or so." Gram clapped her hands and took out her phone and started talking. Mateo came over and sat me on his lap.

"What about tonight, Mitch? Will you go for a walk with me?" I leaned into him.

"Of course, Mateo. I love you; now let's get changed for dinner. I want to go to Rossini's. Call Ric and tell him we leave in an hour and to be ready." He smiled at his cousin's antics. All day, he and Maddie had flirted and bickered, but they had not really touched. It was like they were playing chicken, but I guess Maddie finally could not take it anymore. Oh well, more power to them. I had to get dressed for my anniversary dinner. It was show time in the Burg!

 **Lester POV**

"Yo." There was rustling and kissing noises.

"Cuz, we are going to Rossini's. Please be ready in an hour and please practice safe sex." He grunted at me.

"Lester, we are not having sex, we are racing to get out of handcuffs. It is my turn and she is timing me. Hang up, you are ruining my concentration worse than her kisses. I laughed and hung up the phone. They are so silly acting.

I checked on the guys and they said they would be ready. I am waylaid by Gram who wants me to critique her outfit. I tell her that she looks bootylicious and she dances around. When she spins for the fifth time, I race away. The women in this house were a mess. I called Lula and Bobby answered.

"Yo." He sounded like he was forcing out the word.

"Bob, will you be ready in an hour? We are going to Rossini's." He moans really loudly.

"Yes, you fucking goddess, suck it for Big Daddy!" I could have lived my whole life without hearing his sex talk.

"Bob, focus! Be ready in an hour." Lula took the phone.

"Look, Green Eyes, I like you so I will not smack you when I see you. I am doing some of my best work. We will be ready, now hang up because Bobby has a snack he needs to eat right quick. Make your wife deep throat you or something and leave us grown folks alone." She hung up on me.

She had the right idea though, so I ran the rest of the way into the bedroom to find my wife naked and waiting on the bed for me. She crooked her finger at me and I pounced. I never stripped so fast in my life. I was all over Mitch and she moaned and giggled. We ended up doing a sixty nine and Lu was right, this was a great idea. I pulled my beautiful wife into the shower and we washed each other. I hope every day is like today.

 **Stephanie POV**

I was in a blue and white halter dress that had the back out and Lula was wearing red again. She said it was her signature color. Bobby said it made him feel like a bull. Madison was wearing yellow and she said it made her eyes pop. If she said so. It was a pretty dress in an innocent kind of way. The guys were in linen pants and dress shirts. We were seated at a prominent table and Lula decided we should play a trivia game to pass the time.

"Steph, name the movie when they sang "Nights like this I wish that raindrops would fall…" I looked at her and Tank was bouncing in his seat.

"I don't know, Lu." She sighed.

"Damn, that means you can ask for a lifeline, but if you get it wrong, you have to take off your panties." Now she had the guys' attention. I blushed.

"But what if I am not wearing any?" Lester kissed me and gave me the raised eyebrow. I nodded at him and he smiled.

"Girl, answer the question." I whispered to Tank and he nodded.

"It was the Five Heartbeats, Lu." She nods and it is my turn to quiz her.

"Which Wayans brothers played in White Chicks?" She snorted at me.

"Girl, please that was Shawn and Damon." Ha!

"Nope, it was Shawn and Marlon. You have to take off your panties, Lu." She got up and stormed to the bathroom. When she came back, she handed me red thongs. Just for fun, I smelled them. The guys all moaned. Lula howled laughing. It was so easy to mess with them.

We asked Tank a Forrest Gump movie question and he named ten types of shrimp! Ric got the Dirty Dancing movie quote wrong and had to remove his boxers. We watched him sit there.

"Um, you lost, so you have to take off your boxers, Ric." He just drank his tea.

"I am going commando." Gram stood up and frisked him. She sat down and nodded at me and Lu. Maddie kissed him and said he was a bad boy and what if he got into an accident. He kissed her back and gave her the next question about the Princess Bride and I wondered how he knew about it.

She got it wrong and left and came back with yellow thongs which she handed him. He looked at us and smelled them. We cheered. I know we were making a spectacle of ourselves, but that was the point. We were fun people, and the guys were not thugs or anything like that.

A woman approached us and we stopped being loud. "Hello, my name is Freda Markowitz and I wish I was sitting with you guys. I am not an evil gossiper and I just love your dresses. So, my husband Johnny works in construction and I am a secretary. Will you give me the scoop? I am willing to take off my panties." The guys huddle and nod at her. She leaves and comes back with peach lacy panties and gives them to Axe and he grins at her.

"So, um Freda, can you get me a hard hat?" Lu high fived me and Freda giggled and sat down. We talked for a while and she left to order her dessert. We had exchanged numbers and she said she would definitely call us to go shopping one day and to give me the hard hat.

My husband kept kissing my neck and we were holding hands. He was so attentive today. I am so glad that tomorrow is Saturday and we have the final walk through of our center. The guys have construction and painting to supervise. That is their thing.

Just when we were finishing dessert, someone I did not want to see stopped at our table. Just great! Joe fucking Morelli. I guess the Grapevine works both ways. Gram was ready to get him for me, I just know it. I decided to let the fool hang himself. He stood there staring at the guys with disdain.

"Hello there, Cupcake. I hear that you got yourself hitched to some Latino guy. That will never work out. You know we should catch up and relive some old times, what do you say?" The guys all growled and we held them back.

I just glared at him and stood up really fast, spilling my drink on him and as he backed away, Gram threw her dessert on him and he could not see. She groped him and he fell down, losing his pants in the process. While people were laughing at his hairy ass, I leaned over him.

"Hey Morelli, if you approach me again I will fucking shoot you. Cop or not, I have a bullet with your name on it. My name is Stephanie and if that is too hard for you, you can call me Mrs. Santos. I will never cheat on my husband. Get lost, loser!" I kicked him and we all left the restaurant. I cannot stand that man. Les kissed me the whole way home.

As we walked around the property later holding hands, Mateo talked about his hopes now that he was back home. "I just want you to know that no matter how hard I have to work, I love and adore you, Mitch." I hugged him.

"You silly man, I love you, too. Lu and I will be working just as hard. Now, how did you like the mancave? Did you see the Frogger game?" He laughed and smiled at me.

"Yes, Mitch. I unwrapped it today. I love the mancave, Baby. Did you like your earrings?" Is he kidding? They match my wedding ring. He is the sweetest man. We kissed for a while before we decided to take things to the bedroom. I rode on his back the whole way there and we spent the rest of the night celebrating our marriage. I was definitely going to feel this in the morning.


	11. Chapter 11

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for some scenes and language. This is where my muse took me today.**

 **This is just a quick chapter to let you know I am not abandoning the story. Thank you for reading and reviewing.**

 **Stephanie POV**

I was trying really hard to focus on work, but it was proving an exercise in futility. I had a wonderful wake-up call this morning. My husband would have gotten all tens from the Olympic judges if I let them into the bedroom. It had started out as a sneak attack that had me begging him for release. He had just ramped up the torture and showed me a few new tricks.

Our enthusiastic morning activities were halted by Lu who told me that she would come in and get me if she had to and that she had left her man on simmer, so I needed to get my bony butt out of bed. I was thrilled that she called me bony and I had left Mateo panting while I dressed in sweats and sprinted out the door. I know I am marked below my neckline and surprisingly, all over my back, but hey, at least I know my husband loves me.

At our building, we had one whole section for the kids to use as a learning center with laptops and dry erase boards and books. This area overlooked the play area which was the entire floor. We designed it to resemble a forest. The kids could get into teams and play laser tag. The office was also on the upper level, but a person needed to get past security to get into the office. Lu and I decided to hire Madison because she had lots of energy and she could supervise the kids that were playing.

Currently we were doing signups for the children and they were coming in with their parents and grandparents. There were a surprising number of grandparents signing up their grandchildren. It was kind of weird. Lu just laughed and told me that they did not want to be babysitters anymore and they wanted to have fun, too. We limited the number of kids that could come to 35 until we hired more help and according to our business plan, that should be around October. I was not worried. Things were going smoothly and I really think we should be good for an August opening.

As far as our consulting business, we had appointments with several local businesses this week and our first clients were arriving soon. I was wearing a suit with a short skirt and it was grey with a bright blue blouse and blue heels. My hair was in a loose bun and Lu was in a red suit with a white stretchy blouse. Her hair was pinned up with chopsticks. We were both still armed. There was a knock on the door and Ranger came in with Tank following him. They were dressed in blue and silver suits and they had briefcases.

I led them to the seating area and offered them drinks. Ranger sighed. "Steph, why are you making us do this? When can I send the guys over to install your system and cameras?" I smiled at him.

"Perception in everything, Ranger. People will see you leaving here looking all polished. You are good advertising for us." He smiled at me.

"So, why didn't you make Lester do this?" I grinned at him.

"Mateo in a suit would not be good for business because I would be all over him. You will notice that Bobby is also not here. Now leave and smile at people on your way out. Send the guys over to do our system. I think you guys should use grey, black, white and turquoise as your color palette." They nod again and leave giving the waiting ladies a thrill, especially when they smiled and held open the door for them. Heh heh. This was almost too easy.

 **Lester POV**

I love my wife. She is adventurous and loving and damn she is good in bed. Mitch said that I could not come to her fake business meeting today because she would jump me, but that is alright. It gives me more time to help the guys with our building. Things were really taking shape.

The guys agreed with me that we should let Mitch and Lu observe the people we want to hire so that they could help us to weed out problem people. I know the girls can handle themselves and that they could probably pass our fitness tests, too. My wife was very flexible. I am such a lucky man. I smiled again as I thought about this morning. My phone rang and it was Mama.

"Si, Mama?" I know that Larissa Santos does not make calls for no reason.

"Are you really coming this weekend to the fiesta, Lester?" Yup.

"Sure, Mama, and Mitch will be there as well." She already agreed.

"Listen, Lester, you are my son and I love you, but you are not doing your duty to la familia." What was she talking about?

"Ma, I am married and I do not do drugs. I am partners in a business and along with my wife, I own my own home. We even have a dog. What are you talking about?" She never just gets to the point.

"When will you try for bambinos?" My mother is crazy.

"Mama, I cannot tell you that because I have to discuss it with Mitch. We will make that decision together. Now I just got home two weeks ago, what is your rush?" She sighs.

"Your aunt Florencia called and she is expecting two nietos, Lester!" I laughed. Is everything a competition with her? She must have already called Alicia and been turned down. Leesh would not be rushed. She was a corporate lawyer and she was into her career. She was a year older than me and it was starting to drive my mother crazy.

"What about adopting, Lester?" She wants grandchildren badly.

"Mama, I promise to bring it up with Mitch, but we were going to wait a year at least." She sucks in a breath and then I hear her saying Hail Mary's. Now she was sobbing.

"First you go away on some James Bond thing and I cannot talk to you and Maria cannot talk to Ricky. Then you come back and say surprise I am married. Now you want to be a workaholic and I will never get to make little baby blankets and booties and take pictures of my nietos! I need grandchildren, Lester. Make it happen! Your father says hello and to make it a boy. I told Cris that he can do the same things with a girl. Please adopt, Lester. It is faster. Tell your Estefania. Okay, bye."

She hung up. I sighed and called Mitch. Her phone went to voicemail and I left her a message to let me know if she wants to adopt a baby or a small child with me. She was going to flip when she called me back. I just hope she can help me to talk my mother down off of her ledge.


	12. Chapter 12

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for some scenes and language. This is where my muse took me today.**

 **Thank you for reading and reviewing.**

 **Stephanie POV**

I shook my head and listened again. Nope. "Lu, can you listen to this message and tell me if you hear crazy or if it is just me?" She takes my phone and listens to the message. She whistles.

"Listen, Girl, your man sounds like his Mama is trippin on him. I know we agreed not to get pregnant any time soon, but I will support you on the whole adoption thing. My friend Rachel is a social worker and she can make some calls for you." Wow, I love Lu.

"Isn't it too soon, Lu? I mean I am only going to be 24 this year." She rolls her eyes at me.

"That is what happens when you get married. Now let me make the call and get the ball rolling. Don't you act like you agree right away neither. That man needs to be trained. What nerve! Sending you a voice message like that. He needs to go on a private walk with you and give you flowers and buy toys and all of that to convince you first. Plus, let his Mama butter you up. I heard she likes to cook, Girl."

I smiled and hugged Lu. She was right. Mateo was not getting off the hook about this any time soon. Besides, if we did the legwork, it would get done right. I called him and he answered the phone like he was chasing someone.

"Hello, Mitch. Did you get my message?" Wow, he is really high strung about this.

"Sure, Mateo, but did you really ask me about adoption?" He sighs.

"Baby, I am twenty seven years old and I have been thinking that we could be good parents. Once the building is completed, the guys will move out and we have the space. What do you think?" Nope. Not good enough.

"Let me think about it, Mateo. How are things going over there?" He talks about the furniture and the offices and that he is hiring his sister to be their in house lawyer. That's nice.

"So, Mama called about this weekend, Mitch. She wanted to make sure that you would come as well." Of course I was going, is he high?

"Yes, Mateo, I will be there. How is Miss Larissa and Mr. Cristobal?"

"They are fine, baby. I miss you. Can we talk about adopting more later? I cannot stop thinking about it." He is so cute like this.

"Sure, Mateo, we can discuss it later. I have another client coming in so I have to go. See you later. I love you." I hang up and an older black woman barges into my office with Lu following her.

"I don't need an appointment, Girly. Edna told me to come and see her little grandbaby about fixing up my store. I have taken over Pleasure Treasures and I want to change the image to a more understated theme. Give me some ideas. I brought some cookies." I like her already.

"Well, Miss.." She interrupts me.

"I am Mrs. Minnie Washington, dear. Eat a cookie. The both of you are too thin. You are not on diets are you? If you are not careful, that little wedding ring will fall right on off of your finger. Now I want the ladies to know that they can come in and things will be discreet. Everyone needs some spice in their life, you know." I sit back and eat the cookies. They are delicious.

"Mrs. Washington, we will take your case and I am sure that we can come over tomorrow to look at your floor plan. Here is a contract for our services." She signs the contract and leaves quickly. She said that time is money and she is making hers. I like her. Lu just shrugs.

Next is Mr. Yusef Morgan and he owns the car washes called Sparkling Touch and Detailing. He sat down and took a cookie.

"So, what do you ladies suggest I do to make my car washes better?" I looked over his business plan while Lu worked on his logo. I made a call and Ric agreed.

"Yusef, you are now going to be the official car wash for Rangeman. Get them for security. Lu is working on your logos and we are changing your uniforms. We suggest different music at the businesses and we can do a walk through tomorrow. What time is good for you?" He smiles.

"I like y'all. My granny said I should give y'all a holler and she was right. I am cool with first thing in the morning, homegirl." I handed him the contract for service and he signed it and left after he took some more cookies.

Lu sat on the corner of my desk and sighed. "Girl, I am about to leave. The guys are still here doing the installation, but me and Doctor Bob have a date." I hug her.

"No problem, Lu. I will wait here and lock up. I will attach your keyfob to your keys when I get home. Have a nice time." She laughs and runs out of the office. I am happy for her that she found someone.

 **Lester POV**

"Ric, do you like these tricycles?" I show him a website on my laptop. He looks at it.

"Les, those are too small for us to use as a part of the fleet." I laugh.

"No, Ric. I am thinking about adopting." He sighs and shakes his head at me.

"Lester, you do not start with toys. You start with making a plan. You will have to consider daycare, security, maybe a guard or a nanny and your work schedule." He sounds like he wants to put a lowjack on my future kid.

Tank walks over. "Both of y'all are wrong. You need to talk to your wife, man. She is not the stay at home type and if she did not want a baby yet, she will not want an infant. Maybe you should get two kids. I am an only child and I did not like it. This way they will have a little homie to hang with. Can you handle two kids? Hey! We can open a daycare here on like the second floor and then it will already be secured! We can do background checks on everyone!" He runs off to call Lu. Ric just shakes his head.

"You can make them wear these ankle bracelets, Lester and you will always know where they are! Let me make a call and see if I can get miniature bullet proof vests. Our schedules are packed tomorrow with meetings. I have Hector working in procurement and we have interviews in the afternoon, but I can definitely work on this ankle bracelet idea for you. Tia Larissa will be pleased."

He walks away from me. I don't even have the kids yet or my wife's consent and the guys are excited. Antonio and Ram are over at their building doing the install or I know they would be giving me their input as well. I love my wife and I just hope she agrees to this.

At the end of the day, I go to collect my beautiful Mitch and I find her dancing with Antonio and Ramsey. I give them the raised eyebrow and they hug her and leave. She looks so pretty still. I know she had a long day.

I hug her. "Hey there, beautiful lady. Are you ready to go home?" She smiles and we kiss.

"Sure, Mateo. Let me lock up and grab my bag." We had carpooled today. I know we cannot do that tomorrow because we both have meetings. I take down her hair and she blushes at me.

"Mitch, please will you consider adopting children with me?" She blinks at me.

"Children, Mateo?" Oh boy.

"Yes, so that they can be a team and not be alone, Mitch." She smiles at me and we get into the car.

"Mateo, we need to consider whether we are ready. I mean we have not spent much time together yet. There is daycare to think about and I do not want to be a stay at home mother. That means that the kids would come to work with me sometimes." I smile because she did not say no.

"Mitch, I know that the process will take time and I just want us to get started. Yes, my Mama gave me the idea, but she is right. There are children out there that need homes. I promise to do my part in this and not to take you for granted. Let's change our clothes and take a walk before dinner. I will even cook!" She giggles at my enthusiasm and we go to change our clothes. I feel good about this.

 **Lula POV**

"Lu, Baby, I want you to know that I have enjoyed spending time with you and I know the building is just about ready for us to move in." Really? He is moving out on me? Is he breaking up with me? I will cut him.

"Yes, things seem to really be coming along, Bobby." I stop walking and prepare for him to give me the rest of his speech. I am strong, I can take it.

He grabs my hand. "Will you please allow me to stay with you permanently? You are so wonderful and I love you, Lu."

Wow. I was not expecting this. He is a handsome and intelligent man. He had tried to go on our runs with us, but I told him that it was my time with my girl and he could go and chase his own friends. He even understood that and Juliet liked him. Why is he frowning? Oh!

"I love you, too, Bobby." He grabs me and we kiss for a long time right there in the park.

"Girl, I thought you did not feel the same way. I was getting worried." I lean into his embrace.

"Hell no! I love your sexy ass. Yes, you can move in and we can split the bills and all of that. I will give you my lawyer's and accountant's information. If we are going to do this, then we will do it right and besides, the house is a tax shelter." He kissed my cheek.

"I love that you are so smart, Lu. Now let's go home. How do you feel about meeting my parents next week?" Good boy. I was wondering when he would bring that up. I have to call Granny Bea.

"I will call my Granny Bea so she can come and visit us and yes I will meet your parents, Bobby." We hug again and drive to the house.

Steph was going to be so happy for me! I ain't getting married yet like her crazy silly self, but she did get her a good man. Nope, when I get married, I am having a big wedding so everyone will know that this man, my man is off the market permanently. Maybe I should start planning now. It can be a winter wedding! I will have to think about this.

 **Ranger POV**

I knocked on her door and she cracked it again. She knew I was coming. "Password?" She kills me.

"Funnel cake, Madison." She smiles and comes out wearing another yellow dress with brown wedge heels and her hair down. I take her hand and lead her to the car.

"Where are you taking me for dinner, Ricky?" I smile at her.

"I am taking you to Bella Mariposa. It is owned by my cousin Diego." She stops walking and stares at me.

"Are you crazy? If we go somewhere that your family owns, then your family will know that I am dating you. Are you ready for that? I know Latin mothers and I am not ready for yours to be pressuring me on top of my own. She calls me every day lamenting the fact that I am not married yet and why won't I just date her friend's son Nino."

She makes a good point. Maria Manoso was a force of nature, but I mostly tune her out when she calls. She has my sisters to nag and she is glad that I am back home safely, so she might give me another month or two before she starts with me. Who am I kidding? Diego's brother Juanye would tell my mother all about Madison. I really like her, though. I take a deep breath.

"Madison, I really like you. Maybe we should make a pact. We will face our mothers and tell them that we will get married when we are ready and that we are just dating right now. You are strong; I know you can do it." She smiles at me and jumps me. We kiss right there in front of her house. I pull away and look at her.

"Fine, Ricky, but you had better hold up your end of the deal. I am not getting engaged yet, so do not ask me. I will let you know when I am ready. Come on and take me to the family restaurant. Do not do that staring at me thing. People will think you are smitten or something." She is so cute with her feisty self.

"Maybe I am smitten, Madison." She smiles and gets into the car. I fasten her seatbelt and kiss her gently.

"Maybe I am smitten, too, Ricky. Don't let it go to your head." I won't. I get into the car and drive us to dinner. I really like this girl.


	13. Chapter 13

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for some scenes and language. This is where my muse took me today.**

 **Thank you for reading and reviewing.**

 **Stephanie POV**

It had been a hectic week, but a productive one and I was really looking forward to spending some quality time with Mateo. He was off tonight. I was thinking about his and hers massages when there was a buzz at the door. I used our cameras to see who it was and I was shocked to see my father there. What could he want? He has barely said a word to me since I got engaged to Dickie two years ago. I let him inside and met him in the foyer. He followed me back to my office and we sat down to talk. Well, I am assuming that he came to talk. I just sat and stared at him.

He cleared his throat. "You have a nice place here. I have heard about it from some of the guys and they heard about it from their wives. You know how it is. Listen, I came here to talk to you. I know your mother was all gung ho for you to marry that Richard Orr guy, but I was against it. I know I never stuck up for you back then, or ever really, but I wish now that I had. Your mother put too much value in other people's opinions and I just let her take control of things at home. It was easier that way." He stood and paced to the window.

"I have come to realize that it was wrong and I do not have the relationship with you that I should. So many times I should have been there for you and I was not, Pumpkin. I mostly came here to apologize. I can see that you have made something of yourself and you should be proud of yourself. Even if you had to leave the state to do it, I am proud of you. Also, we had your mother admitted into a program for alcoholism. I don't know how she will do, but at least she won't be bothering you." He turned around to face me and he looked older suddenly.

"Before I go, I wanted to ask if I could meet your new husband. I hear he is a real stand up guy." I open my mouth to answer him and Mateo speaks up. He must have used his key.

"Hello, sir. I am Lester Santos and I adore your daughter." He held out his hand and shook hands with daddy.

"It is good to meet you, Lester. You can call me Frank. I was just talking to Stephanie here, but I am going to go." Lester looked at me and I sighed inwardly.

"Dad, would you like to come over for dinner this week?" He smiled and agreed to come over tomorrow. I am sure he will love the guys. He hugged me and left. I am not sure how I feel about it. I mean he only approached me because he heard the gossip? Am I being too hard on him? Who knows. Mateo came back from walking daddy to the door and pulled me into his arms.

"Baby, I am glad that you invited him. He is reaching out to you. It will be fine, now let's get going. I was out there ringing the buzzer for ten minutes. You almost got left here, Mitch." I know he is messing with me, but it still makes me laugh. I love my husband, especially when he is silly like this.

We picked up takeout and decided to have a picnic on the floor of our bedroom. After we ate I took a shower while Mateo took Romeo for a walk and I stretched out on the bed to wait for him. I was not sleepy at all.

 **Lester POV**

My wife is so beautiful. I know that she has been working hard this week and shuttling to all of her appointments with Lula and I want to help her to relax. I missed having lunch with her, but I know that it will not always be possible to eat together. This property is great and I am so pleased that we live here. I stop in the kitchen and make a sundae for Mitch. I plan to feed it to her and maybe eat some of it off her. I absolutely adore when she is dressed in simple clothes. She is beautiful when she is in her business attire, but I fell in love with that sweet girl from the beach. Of course I am waylaid by Ranger. How long has he been standing there?

"Yes, Cuz? What is the deal? This ice cream will melt." He seems worried.

"How did you know you were in love with Stephanie?" Oh man! I turn around and make him follow me back to the kitchen where I make him a sundae to match the one I will surely be eating. This man can plan sneak attacks and military missions, but throw a 130 pound woman at him and he acts like a Keystone cop. I must be patient with him. I will be supportive. Madison is a cool girl and she is not afraid of Ric. We sit down at the breakfast bar.

"Why do you think that you are in love, Ric?" He gets a silly grin on his face that I know he will deny.

"She is so lively and fun. I love that she wears yellow all of the time like she is a cartoon character. She also went with me to Mariposa and she was not intimidated. You know that she is not afraid of me and I love to kiss her. My guns do not turn her off and she is not pressuring me for sex. I think that she likes me for me and not just my looks or my money. She has not complained about my long hours. She gave me a massage earlier. She wants to meet the family." He finally runs out of steam and I smile at him.

"She sounds even more wonderful every time you talk about her, Ric. I think that you really are in love with Madison. Do you think that she feels the same way about you? I mean are you confident in the return I love you?" He looks shocked. I try hard to hold in my laughter.

"Do you think that I will say it and she won't say it back?" I let the laughter out and he now looks offended.

"Ric, I have seen her with you. She rode on your back for a piggy back ride the other day. She always touches you when you are near her. She play fights with you and she brought you lunch to work yesterday. She probably feels the same way about you. Why are you not with her right now?" He sighs.

"She said she wanted to watch a movie and could I leave because it was a chick flick and she did not want me to cry." My poor, poor delusional cousin.

"Ric, she was fucking with you. Go back over there and tell her I said to stop bullying you. Then kiss her and tell her how you feel. Man up, Ric. You cannot offend this girl. She grew up with a lot of guys in her life. Stop walking around on egg shells with her. You won't mess up as long as you tell her the truth and if you do fuck up, remember to apologize." He finishes his sundae and hugs me and leaves. The poor lovesick fool.

"That was very sweet, Mateo. I gotta say that I am feeling unappreciated around here if Maddie can get piggy back rides and Ric can get sundaes while you leave me all alone in our bed." I smile and kiss my baby with all of the passion I feel.

"Did she call you?" She smiles and makes herself a sundae.

"Yup. She asked me what she did to make him leave and I told her that he was sort of literal and that he was new to relationships, so go easy on him. She was freaking out because she thought that he got her weird sense of humor. I told her that she had to spell things out for him a little and that she should tell the guy how she feels. Then I had to convince her that he probably feels the same way. I did not know you were down here being Dr. Phil and serving up delicious treats. I am taking my sundae and leaving. Good day, sir." She walked away and I knew my line.

"But, Mitch!"

She turned to me and said, "I said good day, sir!" She was adorable and she was all mine. I followed her to our room.

"Mitch, baby, I am so happy with you and I love you. I cannot believe that you waited for me all of that time. When I think about it, I am so grateful and I know that our love is real. Promise me that when I piss you off, you will let me know and that you will let me fix it. I need you to always stay with me." She set her sundae on the table and jumped into my arms. She kissed all over my face.

"You silly man! Of course I was going to wait for you! I love you, too. I promise to try to work out our problems together, Mateo. You are my favorite person, you know that. Now leave me alone so I can eat my ice cream." I sit against the headboard and she sits between my legs and leans against me. I kiss her neck and she giggles.

"You really are my whole world, Mitch." She sighs.

"Right back at you, Mateo. As long as I have you, I can face anything. Thank you for your support earlier." I rub her arms.

"I would do most anything for you, girl. Now eat that ice cream so I can give you a rub down and then you can thank me by returning the favor." She giggled and I kept kissing her until she was done. I love my life right now.

 **Ranger POV**

I knocked on the door and she opened it wearing tiny shorts, a yellow tee shirt that was dangerously low cut and bared her stomach and yellow fuzzy slippers. Her hair was in a sloppy ponytail. She was tapping her foot on the floor.

"Did you really think that I wanted you to leave, Ricardo?" Well, yes.

"Yes, Madison. I do not say what I do not mean, so I thought you meant it. I do have a sense of humor." She just sighed and pulled me inside by the hand. I sat on her couch and she plopped herself on my lap.

"Ric, I care about you and when you left, I called Stephanie to see what I did wrong. She said I said the opposite of what I wanted and you believed me. So, sorry about that." She was so cute. I pulled her hair loose, and played with it. It was now or never.

"Madison, I have never said this to anyone before, but I want you to know that I love you." There, I did it. And now I wait. She gasped and hugged me. I could feel her kissing my neck, and then she pulled back.

"Wow! I love you, too! I thought I scared you away because I can be so brash sometimes! It usually does not seem to bother you, though and you are so sweet to me. I think about you all the time and you do not even rush me to have sex. You are even good looking and you do not live with your mother and you have guns! That is so great!" She hugs me again. Wow. I feel so much better now that she said it back. I lean forward and kiss her. She responds, but then she pulls back and glares at me.

"Did you eat ice cream? Not Mr. My Body is a Temple! You did not bring me any!" I smile and lift her from my lap. Ha! I grab the bag that I brought with me.

"Here you are, Sunny." She giggles. Well, she does wear yellow a lot.

"Thank you! I am so glad that you came back, Ric. You are a good boyfriend. Nice touch with the ice cream. Do not think that it will get you some ass, though." She says that, but she French kisses me.

"Hey, Ric. Let's eat this in my room. It was not the ice cream that did the trick, but the I love you. Come on, man. I have wanted you for weeks!" She turns off the television and runs to her room. I follow like her willing slave. She is fun and so carefree. I need that in my life after some of the shit I have been through. She was in for it, though. I am about to let go of all of my pent up aggressions. I am especially glad that she does yoga.

"Are you ready for me, my love?" She was taking off her shorts. She threw them at me and turned around so that I could see her tiny yellow thongs. It was at that moment that my control snapped. I think I roared a little, but she just growled right back and gave as good as she got. It's good to be me today.


	14. Chapter 14

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for some scenes and language. Steph and Lula are best friends and they are badass.**

 **Thank you for reading and reviewing.**

 **Stephanie POV**

Before I even opened my eyes, I knew I would have to fight off my amorous husband. He was already French kissing my stomach and spreading my legs with his shoulders on his way to the Promised Land. I moan despite the fact that I should not be encouraging him.

I start negotiating my release from the bed. "Mateo, I have to meet Lu for our run. I have to do the marketing after I shower and cook breakfast. I will skip breakfast if you make me late for our run. Oh fuck yes!" He had taken my clit into his mouth and sucked on it just right. My legs fell the rest of the way open and I grinded into his face. He was a wonderful lover!

"Please, Mateo, please!" He ignored me and flipped me to my stomach and lifted my ass. I caught myself on my elbows and he plunged into me.

"Shut up and take it, Mitch! I had to feel you rubbing this sexy ass against me for the last hour in your sleep. You are not getting out of this bed until you cum on my dick, girl." Oh, he sounds so sexy when he just wakes up. Oh!

"Mateo! YES!" I collapse and he thrusts three more times and I feel him shake and he moans my name. I roll over and kiss him and then I race to the shower and to put on my tee shirt and shorts and sneakers. Surprisingly, I beat Lu outside. I stretch and warm up and she finally comes outside still adjusting her sneakers. Tramp!

"Girl, you know that man loves him some me! Whew! Let's take it easy this morning because damn I can still feel the tingles. Grandma Bea is coming today! I am so glad it is a Saturday. Are you really having yo daddy to come here? Girl, you know I got your back."

She says all of this while she warms up and stretches. I love Lu like the sister I never had. Oh, right. I do have a sister. Whatever. We run and race and Lu wins. Damn Bobby must be a love doctor. Heh heh.

"Lu, I am doing the marketing after I cook breakfast. You will have to meet Miss Bea alone to introduce her to Bobby." She sucks her teeth at me.

"Girl, how are you gonna do me like that? She said she is bringing a friend, Sammy and that they would share a room. I told her that I had plenty of room for her homie and she said they were used to sharing a room. It must be some old lady thing." I just looked at Lu. Was she really this clueless? I was not going to be the one to tell her that Sammy was probably a guy. Nope. Not me.

I hug her and run inside to shower and change into my starburst looking sundress. It was yellow, orange, red and white and it was spaghetti strapped and tight around the bodice and it flared around my knees. I wore orage platform heels and I put my hair into a ponytail.

In the kitchen, I made pancakes for everyone and turkey sausage with egg whites. My pancakes had oatmeal and crushed pecans in them and I even let the guys use honey instead of maple syrup. They appreciated that I cooked. Ella would have to spoil them to compete with me, but whatever.

Mateo kissed me for a long time before Antonio and Ramsey pulled him away. "Come on, man. We will be back for dinner, Steph. Thanks for making our lunches!" Lu sucked her teeth at me and handed Bobby his lunch.

"Thank you, Babydoll. See you tonight. Be a good girl today." She blushed at his words and I fanned myself. Damn Doc!

I walked both dogs since they were hanging together and headed to the market. I was in the mood for seafood, so I purchased lobsters, shrimp, scallops and tilapia. I was loading up on cabbage, lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers when I heard a bitchy voice behind me.

"Well if it isn't my runaway sister! I cannot believe you have the nerve to show your face around here after that shit you pulled two years ago! You are such a fucking embarrassment! Go back to wherever you were before. You are not wanted around here!" Wow. I look at my watch and it is only 9am. Is she drunk or something?

I text Mateo to come and get my groceries and I even talk to a worker and tell them that he is coming to get everything. I text him to get a lot of vanilla pudding and lemon cake mix. Finally, I turned back to Valerie and the angry mob she has assembled. Wow. There were at least 20 PTA moms and they must be bored because it is the summertime. I wonder who is watching their kids?

"Hello, Valerie. Must you use profanity first thing in the morning? I thought you were raised better than that?" She growls and flings a bowl of potato salad at me. I side step it and it crashes to the floor. Wow. She is going to have to pay for that.

"You bitch! It is all your fault that Mom is in a fucking rehab hospital like she has a problem!" Wow. Denial much?

"Valerie, calm down and stop vandalizing this place!" She throws a fruit salad at me and I move again. It lands on the floor.

"People keep talking about our family and you ruined everything! Daddy is being all secretive and Mom is in that place while you run around town with your Mexican husband! Did he need a green card or something?" No that Mom jeans wearing bitch did not!

I pick up some cut watermelon and smash it into her face knocking her down. I use my karate moves to incapacitate her. The angry mob of PTA moms starts hurling food at me at warp speed and I cannot evade all of it. Wow. She has backup bitches. I will get them back. Someone called the cops because the next thing I know, I am arrested for disturbing the peace. I use my phone call to contact Mr. Grisham and Ranger.

Ranger showed up first with a dufflebag and he glared at some rookie cop until he let me use the locker room to shower that shit off of me. I take my shower and change into a yellow sundress that I know belongs to Maddie and I clean off my shoes and put my hair into a bun. He had included shampoo. I owe him a cake for this.

Ranger was so sweet! I hug him and he escorts me back to the conference room. Mr. Grisham has had the charges dismissed because I did not instigate the attack. Tank and Mateo had paid for my groceries and they had taken the security footage as well. I pressed charges on Valerie and her angry mob. The bitches. I left there formulating revenge plans. They were going down. Maybe that is what they needed! Heh heh.

 **Lula POV**

I am so fucking pissed that I missed a chance to have my girl's back! I got the scoop from Gram. Wow, her bitch of a sister had her own lynch mob in the damned Shoprite? I was pacing back and forth waiting by my car for Granny Bea.

I told Bobby that I would be alright alone since she was only staying for the weekend and maybe into Tuesday. It would depend on what she and Gram got into and her homie Sammy. She sounded like a pip. I was wearing my red and white sundress and a red hat and red shoes. I know I look the bomb. I hear a squeal and I look in that direction to see my Granny and some man holding her hand.

"Hey there, Lulabear! Girl, you are looking fresh to death!" Who taught her slang? She shoves the man at me and he looks like if Denzel Washington was her age. Wow what a nice smile. Wait a damned minute!

"You must be Sammy. You are a tall drink of water, aren't you?" He laughs and I am transfixed. Look at those teeth!

"Girly, calm it on down. He is spoken for and I hear tell you got a little medicine man taking care of those cobwebs for you! Did he crack your back, Girly?" She is a mess!

"Granny Bea, you just give me those suitcases. I cannot believe you did not tell me you had a man!" She giggles.

"How was I supposed to rub it in your face? I only just found out about your Dr. Feelgood from Edna. Now stop jibber jawing and take us to see your new house." I do as I am told and I let Sammy sit in the backseat. I refrain from looking at him in the mirror because that smile is lethal. He must never get a parking ticket. Wow. I hope Bob looks like him when he grows up.

I park and take another call from Maddie. First, she wanted to brag about Ranger and I listened to her story and now she was asking what she could bring over for dinner. I told her she was not invited but if she wanted to crash the party to get the scoop, she should bring some good wine. She laughed and hung up.

I took Granny and her man into my house and she oohed and aahed at my furniture and Juliet and her little trollop self rubbed all around Sammy like she was a cat instead of a dog. She was shameless.

"Listen, Girly, why don't you go to the store and get yourself some new shoes or something while Sammy and I get changed from our trip. Thanks for having us and I will be over to your little friend's house in a little while. See you in a couple of hours."

She grabs Sammy and they run up the stairs carrying their luggage. Damn. I did need to escape before I had to witness Granny getting her groove back. Tonight was going to be a mess. Now I can go and help Steph plot her revenge. Nobody messes with my girl!


	15. Chapter 15

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for some scenes and language. Steph and Lula are best friends and they are badass.**

 **Thank you for reading and reviewing.**

* * *

 **Stephanie POV**

I was in the kitchen cooking and dancing and I was still wearing the yellow dress I borrowed from Maddie when Lu came storming inside.

"You knew my Granny Bea was knocking boots with Sammy and you did not tell me!" I smiled at her and continued to cook.

"Lu, it was something that I was mostly sure about, but I had no proof. Is that why you are over here so early?" Ew. Old people sex.

She shuddered and nodded. I also want to plot the revenge we are going to do on those heifers that tried to jump you at the market. This cannot stand, Steph." I love Lula.

"We can turn they kids against them!" She is crazy.

"Lu calm down. I was thinking of asking the guys to have a car wash and when the bitches drive up in their mom vans, we let Gram's male friends be the ones to wash their cars. Plus we send them gift baskets and the perfume is really sugar water so they will be bitten by every mosquito in town and we give all of them health drinks that are really formulated to give them horrible gas. I have a million of these ideas, Lu. We can do them at any time, but first, I have to get the list of arrests made today. That means I have to sweet talk Eddie Gazarra." She hummed and nodded at me.

"Okay, but what about if we get the scoop on their husbands and publish that all over town?" Yes.

"That sounds perfect. We can start tonight after dinner." I work until I finish the food and we leave to change our clothes.

 **Lester POV**

I found my wife standing in front of her closet wearing only a towel. "Hey, Mitch. I missed you today, Baby. How are you feeling after that whole situation with your sister?" I kiss her neck and bite her a little. I cannot keep my hands off of her and I am glad that I do not have to, either. I love my wife.

"Mateo, I feel like I want to get revenge on her and her little minions. She does not know the kind of training that Lula and I have had, and I do not mean the badass training. We have spent time with a lot of older women. They know vengeance, trust me." I turn her to face me and we kiss. I remove her towel and we sink to the floor. Before I can stop myself, I make love to her right then and there.

"Must you attack me every time I stand still, Lester Santos!" She sounds pissed as she dresses, but she has a lovely flush to her skin and love bites on her neck. I am not even worried about her dad. He is the one eating crow right now. He had better not give her grief. She is a married woman after all.

"Yes, Mrs. Santos. I must. I love and adore you and seeing you in a towel got me hot, but hearing you talk about revenge pushed me over the edge. Now stop complaining and let's get downstairs. We have company coming for dinner you shameless hussy. Stop trying to entice me with your lingerie." I have finished dressing in jeans and a tee shirt that has a picture of the sunset on it. She smacks my arm as I leave the room. I turn back as I close the door and see her bending over putting on her high heels. Oh, Mitch. Focus, Lester!

I wandered back to the kitchen and take out the white wine and the sparkling grape juice. I set the bottles into the refrigerator from the freezer and as I close the door, my ass is pinched. I jump and then I hear laughter.

"Hey there, Army boy. My name is Miss Bea and this here is Sammy. I am Lula's grandmother. You are that adorable girl's husband aren't you?" I smile and wave at her.

"Yes, Ma'am. Mitch is my wife and I love her very much." She laughs.

"Boy, she has you whipped, that's for sure. Good girl. Now get on out of the kitchen and take Sammy with you. I hear tell that there is a game room around here somewhere. Go and show Sammy how you play darts or something. Bye now!" She shoved me out of the kitchen and put on Aretha Franklin music.

I turned to Sammy and smiled. There was a knock on the door and I opened it to see Frank.

"Hey, Frank. Come on in. This is Sammy. I don't know his last name, but he is a friend of Lula's grandmother. You know that Lula is Mitch's best friend and business partner." He shakes my hand and Sammy's hand.

"Mitch has a game room here and I was just about to show Sammy and challenge him to some darts or shuffleboard. Join us." He nods and they both follow me.

Frank whistles as he takes in the design of the room. There are old arcade games, a pool table, a shuffle board table, the darts board and an area with recliners and a large screen television.

"This is some setup, Lester." I grin.

"My wife wanted me to have somewhere to play. I told her as a joke that I wanted a man cave and she made it happen. She is so sweet to me."

"That's enough jibber jabber, young man. Let me beat you in shuffleboard right quick. Loser has to put out the trash." I look at Sammy.

"You are on, Sammy." They both kick my butt and I am glad to see Ranger, Tank and Bobby when they show up. Who knew that old men cheated? They must if they can beat all of us on a game as simple as shuffleboard. Ranger takes out a box of cigars and I get alarmed.

"I really do not think we should smoke in the house, guys." Ranger gives me a dismissive look.

"Stop being henpecked, Santos." I shove him a little.

"Do you really want to go there, Ricardo?" He stares at me and I match his glare.

"Boys, behave and wash your hands. It is time to eat. Ric, please smoke out on the deck and not in the house. Mateo, I baked lemon cake." She looks amazing in her baby blue sundress. I love my wife so much.

 **Stephanie POV**

"Lu, wake up! It is time to plant the baskets!"

I was standing outside her bedroom door at 0200. I feel so lucky that she is actually asleep and not otherwise engaged. Dinner went fine once Daddy and the guys broke the ice in the game room. Gram even behaved herself before she and Miss Bea left to have some fun. Daddy and Sammy hit it off and they went to the lodge for a while. I would call it a success. Lester still cannot keep his hands off me and I had to use stealth to get out of the bed just now. I know he will attack me again when I get back, but this is important.

The bedroom door flew open and she was dress in black yoga pants and a black tee like me.

"Girl, keep it down. If you wake up Bobby, I have to put him back to sleep and that will take another hour!" I laugh and we tiptoe away from the door.

"I already loaded up the car with the baskets we made. I have the addresses mapped out, so this should not take long. I cannot believe Gram got gift cards to Ta Ta's for the husbands! This is going to be so funny!"

We had added douche, hemorrhoid cream, rubber gloves, cranberry juice and the biggest pads we could find. We covered the baskets like Easter baskets with that filmy wrap that you can still see through. There was also large dildos and lube in the baskets. The gift cards for the husbands would be in the mailboxes.

We had Miss Bea address them. We made the drop offs and Lu included dogshit in a paper bag at Valerie's house. She said it was because she wanted to be there earlier. She is so funny. There were letters saying "We really think you need this. We hope you feel better soon."

After we made the last stop, we drove back to Sally's house in the black jeep we borrowed from him and switched cars. Sally was so cool, but he cursed a lot. We had met him at Pleasure Treasures. He was looking for some cute outfits in his size. He said he wanted to be a singer in a band and he needed a gimmick, so he would dress like a woman. We demanded that he show us and Lu told him that unless he shaved or waxed his legs, dresses would not look right.

They argued about that for a while and Sally agreed to just try it once and he let us use his car for our mission. He said that we should also do something to their cars, but they all have kids and we don't want to hurt the kids. We just want to embarrass their moms for a while and this was the first step. No one messes with me like this and Valerie had better watch her back. She would be hearing some interesting rumors about herself tomorrow. I cannot wait.


	16. Chapter 16

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for some scenes and language. Steph and Lula are best friends and they are badass. This is mostly fluff.**

 **Thank you for reading and reviewing.**

* * *

 **Stephanie POV**

The guys were doing more training and we had approved several more potential Rangemen, so Lu and Maddie and I were on our own today. I said that we should dress up and go to brunch at the Ivy and Lu said she was definitely down for going into Manhattan. We dressed like on Sex and the City with me in blue, Lu in red and Maddie in yellow and we left for the city. This felt nice, just the three of us hanging out on a Sunday.

"Girl, I am so in love with Bobby." Lu has been like this for a whole week.

"That's really great, Lu." She beams at me and drinks her mimosa.

"Whatever, can somebody have a nice talk with Ric and tell him to take it easy on me? Whenever I tell him that we can go to sleep, he claims that I rub against him in my sleep." Lu and I stare at her.

"Heifer, please. Stop bragging. Tell his commando ass that he cannot stay the night if he cannot behave himself." I grin and add my two cents.

"Tell him it is that time of the month." Lula howls laughing and people stare at us.

"Girl, no. He will write that down and try to keep track. Bobby already asked me about mine." Wow. They are thorough. Is that why Mateo takes my temperature every day and checks my breasts? He said he wanted to play doctor. Does he think I am pregnant or something?

"Maddie, just be honest with him. And seriously, stop bragging because I could tell you stories. My husband is a machine. He says that I taste delicious and he also tastes good." They giggle and we have a great time. I wonder what my husband is doing right now.

 **Mateo POV**

Why do I let Bobby talk me into these things? He told Lula that he needed to train the guys with us, which was s lie and it is a Sunday. We are at Cartier in freaking Manhattan and I know that I just saw my wife!

"Stop being a lovesick fool, Santos. You do not see your wife everywhere you go. Now, which one of these rings do you think my baby would like?" I glare at him, but I am trying to be a supportive friend. Ric is looking at ankle bracelets. I point to a ring that looks like a flower and has a red gem in the center and he gasps.

"That is the one! I stare out of the window and I see Lula, Mitch and Maddie and they are dressed up in fancy dresses and high heels and hats, but it is them. Dammit!

"Look, Bob. The girls just walked by on the other side of the street. You made me lie to my wife. She will not appreciate that. Plus she looks so beautiful in that sundress." He looks out of the window and sees Lula and sighs.

"Fine, you were right, but I wanted this to be a surprise and her granny Bea said that there was no family heirloom jewelry anyhow. I had to come today. We have to work tomorrow and we left Tank, Hector, Antonio and Ram in charge at the building." I know that everything he is saying is true, but I do not want any problems with Mitch.

"Just buy her something. She will forgive you." He is right, but it will not be jewelry that melts my wife's heart. I rush them to make their purchases and I make them go with me to the build a bear store.

"You have got to be kidding me, Lester." I shake my head at Ric.

"Nope. Make a bear or I will call my wife to tell her that we are right down the street from them! I saw them go into LaPerla. Do you want to miss the fashion show, Ric?" He shakes his head and chooses an army bear. I choose a stuffed dog and get to work. Bobby chooses a classic teddy bear.

We leave the store through the back and hit the food court because even though the girls had eaten brunch, we did not eat. We eat Chinese food and talk while keeping an eye out for the girls. We finish our food and I spot them at a shoe store down the street on the same side as us.

It takes all of our training not to let them see us. We have to look suspicious to these people. We duck into a sunglasses store and buy new Raybans. I also get a pair for Mitch.

"Ric, where did you park?" He is modeling his new glasses. They do look awesome on him.

"I parked over there at that garage, Santos." I follow his line of sight and the place is right next to the shoe store where the girls are right now. Son of a bitch! We hurried into the bookstore next door and I watched the windows.

 **Stephanie POV**

"Lu, I feel like we are being followed or watched or something." She nods and tries on another pair of red shoes. She had threatened to smack me when I told her that she did not need another pair. I was guilty of a sparkly shoe addiction myself. Maddie was looking at gold and yellow shoes. We all need a support group.

"Girl, check outside and the windows of the shops across the street and shit." She is right. I do that and gasp.

"What is it?" I sit down and cross my shiny feet.

"Mateo is across the street." She sucks her teeth.

"Do you think his possessive ass tracked you here?" I shook my head at her.

"No, Lu. He would have called me if he wanted to know where I was. I think that they did not really have to work today." She gets irked. Me too. Whatever it was, he could have told me. Unless?

"Girl, do you think that he is meeting someone up here?" No.

"No, but if he is in this district, he is shopping, Lu. He might be buying me a secret present." She smiles and goes to the window.

"Girl, Bobby and Ric are with him!" I giggle. This is so funny.

"Let's pay and leave so they can keep their little shopping trip a secret."

She smiles at me and we frog march Maddie to the register. She had like four pairs of shoes. She was the worst of us. The poor thing.

We leave and take our car and drive back to the city. We take the long way and when we get to the house, the guys are back. I run to Mateo and he catches me and we kiss.

"Hey, Mitch, I missed you today, baby." I sigh and let him hold me. Lu is kissing Bobby and Maddie is showing Ric her shoes and is using them as a barrier. She is so silly.

"Help me with my bags, Mateo. We shopped!" He smiles and follows me to our room. I want chicken for dinner. I will bake it with a honey and teriyaki glaze. I continue to plan my menu while Mateo undresses me.

"What are you doing, Mateo?" He kisses my neck and fondles me just right. I moan.

"Mitch, you looked so pretty in that dress, but it had to go. I want you, baby." We fall onto the bed in a tangle of limbs and volley for position. I win and I get to be on top. Go me!

"Mitch, I did not have to work today." I smile at him and lean down to kiss him.

"I know, Mateo. You guys suck at stealth. We figured you guys wanted to surprise us and we will just wait until it happens. You can tell me anything, Mateo." We continue our rhythm and I collapse next to him in a great state of mind. My whole body is tingling. I love making love with him.

"I did not know what Bobby told Lula until it was too late and she had already told you. I realized that he wanted help with something, so that is why I went along with it. I love you, Mitch." I smiled. My husband was so sweet and sincere.

The phone rings and it is Gram. She is laughing her ass off about something.

"Stephie, your sister came over to my house today scratching all over and her hair was a mess! She was miserable and her little friends are itching, too!" So they used the body wash and shampoo. Excellent.

"People found out about their little care packages and with the scratching, they all look like they have crabs or something. Good job, girlie. Bea says to tell you that you are the bomb and to keep up the good work."

I smile and hang up. I love when a plan comes together. That bitch has only just begun to see my wrath, but right now, I have a horny sweaty husband to cook dinner for. I love my husband and I am very glad that he came clean to me. I would have hated to make him sleep on the couch or something.


	17. Chapter 17

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for some scenes and language. Steph and Lula are best friends and they are badass. This is mostly fluff.**

 **Thank you for reading and reviewing.**

* * *

 **Stephanie POV**

My best friend is a crazy woman. "Lu, there is no way that I want to be a Girl Scout Troop leader." She is pacing in my office at work.

"Girl, I got this scoop from Sally. If we take a troop of little Girl Scouts, then those bitches that are friends with your sister will not be allowed to do it. We can do it, Girl. They can meet here. Come on, it will be fun."

She must think that I am dumb. "Lu, people in the Girl Scouts have to go camping! I do not want to go camping and I do not want to sell cookies. No. Do it with Maddie."

Lu puts both of her hands on my desk. "Stop being a fucking coward! You said you wanted revenge and we like kids. Don't talk about it, be about it, Girl."

She is doing song quotes to me again. I think to myself and wonder whether I can really do this. I do like kids and we have the space. We are not criminals and I do want to get revenge on Valerie's bitch squad.

"Fine, Lu. I will be a troop leader with you." She grins and hands me a form.

"Good. Sign this form and I will take them to file them at the place." I sign the forms and she leaves quickly.

I lean back in my chair and think about the dinner I have to go to at Mateo's family. I love him, so I just hope that his mother is a calm woman. I do not want a pushy woman in my life.

I decide to call Freda Markowitz and she answered on the first ring. "Hello, Steph. How are you doing?"

I smile. She is so nice. "I was thinking about having lunch together today. Are you free?" She giggles and agrees instantly.

"Of course, Steph. I will meet you the Bertucci's at 1pm. I love their bread." I hang up and send a text to Lu that she has to watch the place while I get the scoop from Freda. I call Mateo and see if they need to find anybody. I can ask Freda if she has heard anything.

 **Mateo POV**

"Yo, Cuz. Pay attention. The background check on Rosco Washington came back clean. We do not know where to find this guy and he is worth $100K from Sebring." He was off in his own world as we tried to get him to focus during this meeting.

"I think that you should Shell." He is right. She would know where this guy was. He was wanted for multiple counts of grand theft auto. We had not turned up anything when we tried to canvas his neighborhood.

"Okay, I will call her. How are we on the accounts for Diamond Estates?"

Williams, our new sales department stands and gives his summary. We had head hunted him from a marketing company that Savannah knew about. She told Tank that he was looking for a change and that he was from the Army Reserves, so he would be able to meet our physical standards. I zone out a little myself and my ringing phone makes me almost jump in my seat. I get up and leave the conference room to take the call.

"Hello, Mitch."

"Hello, Mateo. I am going to meet Freda for lunch and Lu wants us to be Girl Scout troop leaders. Do you want me to find out anything for you while I have one of the queens of the Grapevine at my disposal?" I smile. She is so silly. What did she say?

"Mitch, Baby, you cannot be serious! You are going to be a Girl Scout Leader?" She giggles.

"Yes, Mateo. Lu and I completed our application today. We can talk about it later. I love you. So, do you need help with anything?" I adore her.

"Yes. We are looking for Roscoe Washington, Mitch. Have a nice time at lunch, and please call me if you find out anything. I love you, too."

She hangs up and I smile. I wonder if she will have one of those uniforms. She would look so fucking hot in a tiny pleated skirt. I would definitely buy her cookies. Damn, I need to calm down. I take a deep breath and return to the meeting.

I needed to focus. Ranger is love drunk, Bobby is nervous about his proposal, and Tank is going for a nooner if the way that he keeps checking his watch is any indication. It looks like I am eating whatever Tia Ella prepares today. It is hard work being me today. I cannot wait until tonight. I miss my wife.

 **Stephanie POV**

I left Maddie there alone to take any calls that came in and she said that she had lunch plans with Ric. I told her that she needed to wait until Lu came back. She said okay as long as Ric could wait with her. I gave her the Burg glare—I could still do it—and told her that she had better not have sex in my office. She just pushed me out of the door claiming that I was too touchy and to bring her back some cake or something.

At the restaurant, I waited in my blue and silver sundress, denim jacket and silver open toed strappy sandals. My hair was in a loose bun and I had on my silver sunglasses. Several men gave me the once over, but I ignored them while I waited for Freda. I have horrible luck, because Joe Morelli comes into the restaurant with some blonde bimbo attached to his arm.

He spots me and they choose to come over to where I am standing. "Hello again, Cupcake. I might forgive you for what you did to me the last time I saw you if you will have dinner with me." Isn't he on a date?

I smile a polite smile. "No thank you, officer. I am still a married woman and I have no desire to cheat on my husband."

I saw Freda arrive out of the corner of my eye and she was in an orange and white wrap dress. She looked like an ice cream treat or something. Her hair was swept up into a ponytail. She waved and came over to me.

"Hello, Steph. Sorry that I am late. Little Jay was messy and he got me all over my other dress, so I had to change. John has him right now." She smiled at me.

Morelli tries to get my attention again. "So are you saying that you will not have dinner with me because you are married, Cupcake?" Freda was not even here and she looks disgusted with him.

"That is exactly what I am saying, officer. You have a nice day, though." I start to walk away with Freda and Morelli has a parting shot.

"That marriage will never last, Cupcake. You need a real man like me." What is he smoking?

"Thanks anyway, but I have a real man. He is a decorated soldier that will kick your ass if you even think about touching me. Stay away from me, Morelli."

He did not like my threat. I don't care. I join Freda at our table and she has already pounced on the bread basket. I take some for myself and we order iced tea to drink.

"Girl, I love that dress! You have to trade clothes with me so I can wear it home." I laugh but I see that she is deadly serious.

"Why don't you just come shopping with me, Lu and Maddie the next time we go, Freda?" She nods and smiles a huge smile at me.

"Before you tell me anything else, have you heard of Roscoe Washington?" She thinks for a minute and then she gasps.

"You mean the guy that acts like the dukes of hazzard?" What was she talking about?

"Steph, he steals cars and tries to jump over things in them like on that television show. He has a facebook page about it. He is supposed to do something at the old race track tonight. I have forbidden Johnny from going to watch it, though."

I text the information to my husband and relax and let Freda tell me all of the gossip around town. She gets to something funny, though and I laugh into my garden salad.

"You mean it's true? You are going to handle the Girl Scout troop for the Burg?" I grin at her like an evil villain and she cackles laughing.

"Oh, you have to let me help you! I want a front row seat for this, Steph." That was my plan, anyway.

"Of course, Freda. You are welcome to become a den mother or whatever."

"I love what you have done to Valerie and her little henchmen, too. Their husbands all think that they have women problems."

She continues giggling and we make arrangements to meet up to shop on Saturday early and we hug goodbye. I cannot wait to tell Lu that Freda is on board with our plans. I feel good. I got to look great while making Morelli feel like a bug and lunch was delicious. I love fried calamari. I even have Maddie's lunch. So why do I not see my car in the parking lot? Dammit!


	18. Chapter 18

**I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.**

 **A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input.**

 **The rating is for some scenes and language. Steph and Lula are best friends and they are badass. This is mostly fluff.**

 **Thank you for reading and reviewing.**

* * *

 **Stephanie POV**

That mother fucker! My car was missing and I knew that Morelli had something to do with it. I called the police, and then I called my husband.

"Hello, Mitch. What's wrong, baby? I can hear you breathing hard." I groan.

"Will you come and get me? My car is missing and I assume that it has been stolen. I called the police already."

"Mitch, baby. I will come and get you, but we can tell you where your car is. We have trackers on all of the vehicles at work and at home. I am on my way, baby. Stay calm."

I hang up and pace. Freda walks over to me as the police drive up. Carl and Big Dog approach me.

I tell them what time I arrived here and that my car had locks and an alarm. They take down the particulars and tell me that they will look for it and leave. Mateo arrives just after them and waves at Freda.

"Come on, Mitch. We also got the security feed from the traffic cams at the corner and the store across the street. Hector is amazing. We know what happened to your car and we want to show you at the office."

I let him lead me to his car. "Why can't we just go and get my car, Mateo?" He takes my hand and kisses it.

"Baby, do you trust me?" Of course I trust him. I just want my car back.

"Yes, Mateo." He smiles at me and kisses me at the red light.

"Let us tell you our plan, and if you agree, then we will get your car back and some revenge." I like the sound of that.

We get to the office and the guys are waiting in the conference room. I hand Maddie's lunch to Carlos and he leaves to take it to her.

I sit patiently waiting for the video to play. We watch the camera footage and I see a tow truck arrive and Mooch fucking Morelli gets out and makes a call and then he attaches the mechanism to my car and tows it away. No one stopped him. The video shifts and they were able to follow Mooch's journey back to the garage where he works. When they stop the video, I am livid.

"Mitch, calm down. We can get your car back. All we need to do is to give this footage to the police chief. He will agree to pick up Mooch Morelli and the cop will not be able to stop it. We already called him and told him that your car was not really stolen, but taken so that this guy could have some type of leverage on you. Expect him to call you soon."

I was having visions of tarring and feathering Joseph Anthony Morelli. Maybe I could shave his head. He likes his hair. Maybe I could blow up his car. I could do a Carrie on him and douse him in pig's blood! My leg is bouncing and Lester touches my knee to stop it.

"Calm down and stop plotting murder. Let us handle this, Mitch. That cop will be arrested and embarrassed and he will face charges. If we are lucky, he will lose his badge. The creep might make his cousin take the rap for him. Now, why don't you go back to work, baby. We promise to get your car back soon."

I looked at the guys and they had their serious faces on. Great. It was going to be a testosterone thing. I sighed. I would have to do this myself. Joe Morelli was going down. I thank them and leave the room and the building. I make three calls and I get picked up by a rowdy van full of senior citizens.

"Stephie, you came to the right place. Now, what do you want us to do to him? We have Cora's grandbabies ready to do a number on his car, but that is child's play. We know you must have a plan to do something to Morelli. Just tell us what you want and we will make it happen. No one will suspect us and then we are headed to the bingo game at the senior center. That will be our alibi."

Have I mentioned that I love my grandmother?

Miss Bea chimed in next. "Girly, why don't you just fix him some nice hot grits and be done with it? Menfolk shape up right nice after they have some hot grits."

She cracked me up. I smiled and told them my plan. There was much cackling and hooting. We stopped at the Home Depot, the pet store and at the market. They dropped me back at the dry cleaners so I could establish my alibi and wait for Lula to pick me up, and promised to wear gloves. I hope they are never mad at me.

* * *

 **Edna POV**

Those nice boys had given us a skeleton key a while back because we lost ours sometimes. We wore them around our necks. We got Cora's boys to put bananas and other fruit into the tailpipe of that punk's car while it was parked at the police station. That was just the distraction so that we could leave Mr. Morelli a good dinner. We left a nice casserole in his refrigerator with a note on how to heat it up. We even left some "iced tea" in there for him.

After bingo, we went back to the house and changed our clothes and went back to the house. Letty had the bag of cats and we let them loose downstairs. Upstairs, he was out cold, so we had no problems taking care of Mr. Morelli. We changed all of his light bulbs to the pink ones we bought and we opened the windows upstairs. He would have a rude awakening tomorrow and since his fellow officers would be looking for him, they would find him like we left him.

* * *

 **Lester POV**

I felt for Mitch. I knew she was pissed and so was I. This guy is basically a stalker with a badge. We met with the chief of police and he had us enter the station through the side entrance that was near his office. After he viewed the footage, he agreed with us that the cop had something to do with my wife's car being towed and hidden.

He ordered Mooch Morelli to be picked up and he even let us watch the interrogation. The fool folded immediately. He said that his cousin promised to look the other way if he towed that particular car and hid it. He said he had been planning it for a while and he called him and told him to hurry. Mooch said that the car was not damaged and he gave the cops the key to the garage so they could retrieve it.

I went with them because I had a set of keys to the car. He was right. It was not damaged. They took fingerprints and pictures and then they told me I could take the car. The chief said that Morelli would be picked up in the morning before his shift. Good.

I shook his hand and we me and Axe left to go to the house. I could have handled it another way—our way, but I decided to do it the legal way for now. If that bastard takes another run at my wife, the gloves will be off.

* * *

 **Joe Morelli POV**

I woke up to the sound of someone pounding on my front door. It had better not be Mrs. Jacoby from across the street again. Just because I am a cop, she bugs me all the time with every problem she has. Today would be a good day. My mother left me a delicious macaroni casserole and I drank the tea she left. What time was it?

I became aware of my stomach rumbling. Damn, I have to go badly. I started to sit up and noticed that I was covered in something sticky and I am naked. When I tried to move my legs to sit up, I screamed as pain exploded in my groin. Oh, man, my stomach was cramping. I really, really need to go.

My face itched, so I rubbed it and my hand was also covered in the sticky substance. What the hell? Why was my room glowing pink? The pounding stopped and the door was opened. Who the hell was in my house?

I hear mewing, and I look at the floor. There must be eight kittens on the floor. Where did they come from? I try to move again and the pain is worse the second time. I look at my groin and the sight makes me lightheaded. My whole lap is blood red and my Johnson is stuck to my leg somehow. Am I bleeding? I hear footsteps and I wait. I cannot move right now anyway.

Carl, Eddie and Big Dog come into the room with their guns drawn and stare at me. A few moments later, they break into loud laughter.

"Stop laughing and help me! There is something all over me and my dick is stuck to my leg! I might be bleeding! Call an ambulance!"

They call for an ambulance, but they keep laughing.

"Why are you covered in honey?"

Is that what this shit is?

"What's with all of the pink lighting, Morelli?" I glare at them.

"I don't know. It was not like that when I fell asleep." They continue to laugh.

"Fine, what about all of the kittens? Is this what you meant when you said you would be getting some pussy soon?" I look at Eddie with loathing. If my dick was not stuck to my leg, I would get up and punch him. Wait. Why were they here anyway?

"I don't know where the cats came from. What are you three doing here anyway?"

I rub at my face again and I look at my arms. There are hundreds of ants all over my arms and torso. I start smacking at them, but all I end up doing is smearing more of this crap around. First my car breaks down, now this! The guys' laughter renews and I hate them for not helping me. I am sitting here naked, sticky and stuck with kittens all over the place and they just stand there and laugh.

"Morelli, we have a warrant for your arrest for conspiracy to commit grand theft auto."

How did they find out? All I wanted was a reason for Cupcake to see me as a hero. I would let her sweat for a couple of days and then I would call her and tell her that I rescued her car. She would be grateful and very thankful and I would be in there.

"What? I am not letting you arrest me, Gazarra!" I try to stand up again and scream in pain and flop back onto the bed.

The paramedics arrive and they don gloves and put me onto a stretcher. They wrap my naked body in a sheet because of the ants and the honey. Eddie handcuffs me and reads me the Miranda rights.

"You know, we should donate these kittens to the old folks' home. They would probably love to have pets." I hate Carl right now.

As they wheel me through my living room, I look at the destruction of my sofas. There is also the smell of urine. Who did this to me? It was probably Cupcake's husband. I tell Eddie the same thing I am thinking.

"Morelli, Mr. Santos was at the police station most of the afternoon yesterday and he even asked for patrols near their home in case whoever had the car tried to take one of their other vehicles. Nobody left the house last night, man. They did not do this to you. If you are sure that you did not do this yourself, we will ask the neighbors if they saw anything."

Big Dog leans over to talk to me. "You might want to remain silent, Morelli. Do you have a lawyer?"

At that moment, I lose control of my bowels and everyone moans and moves away from me. This is not my day.


End file.
